How Did Farmington Area Lawmakers Vote on Right to Work?

Demonstrators took to the Capitol steps Monday in Lansing to sound off on right-to-work legislation that is poised to become law after Gov. Rick Snyder did an abrupt about-face on the issue last week and a series of related bills passed in the House and Senate.

Larger protests are expected Tuesday when the legislation could reach Snyder's desk for his signature. Patch will be live-blogging from Lansing as the situation develops, and Farmington-Farmington Hills Patch blogger Dick Jaeger is planning to attend and write about the event. 

[Are you participating in the demonstrations? Leave a comment, upload a photo or e-mail Huntington Woods-Berkley Patch editor Leslie Ellis!]

Read on for a description of each bill and to find out how lawmakers who represent Farmington and Farmington Hills voted.

House Bill 4054

The legislation that would make Michigan a "right-to-work" state was passed 58 to 52 in the House on Dec. 6, according to michiganvotes.org. The bill would prohibit unions from requiring workers to pay dues as a term of employment. It also includes a $1 million appropriation to make it "referendum-proof," michiganvotes.org reports. (Visit legislature.mi.gov to download the full bill.)

• Rep. Vicki Barnett (D-Farmington Hills), representing the 37th District, which includes Farmington and Farmington Hills: Voted no and made an impassioned floor speech against the bill, which was posted to YouTube.com. 

Senate Bill 116

The legislation that would make Michigan a "right-to-work" state was passed 22 to 16 in the Senate on Dec. 6, according to michiganvotes.org. The bill would prohibit unions from requiring workers to pay dues as a term of employment. It also includes a $1 million appropriation to make it "referendum-proof," michiganvotes.org reports. (Visit legislature.mi.gov to download the full bill.)

• Sen. Vincent Gregory, (D-Southfield), representing the 14th District including Farmington and Farmington Hills: Voted no

House Bill 4003

The legislation that would extend right-to-work regulations to government and school employees passed 22 to 4 in the Senate on Dec. 6. It passed 63 to 46 in the House on June 8, 2011, according to michiganvotes.org. (Visit legislature.mi.gov to download the full bill.)

• Rep. Vicki Barnett (D-Farmington Hills): Voted no
• Sen. Vincent Gregory did not vote

Senate Democrats, who walked out of the Capitol on Thursday in a show of protest after all 21 of their proposed amendments to the bill were defeated, did not vote on the legislation, Gregory said.

"None of the right-to-work bills ever went to committee for all sides to weigh in on," he said, adding that lawmakers did not get to read the bill before being asked vote on it. "It was just rammed through without any discussion."