LANSING, MI — Michigan’s Republican-led Senate on Thursday approved a plan to repeal the state’s prevailing wage law, which requires union wages and benefits for workers on government-funded construction projects.
The fate of the three-bill package, now heading to the House for consideration, remains unclear.
Republican Gov. Rick Snyder has made clear he does not support efforts to repeal of the 1965 law, setting up a potential showdown with the increasingly conservative Legislature.
Senate Majority Leader Arlan Meekhof, in a floor speech, said prevailing wage repeal is one of his top legislative priorities and suggested it could help state and local governments save more than $200 million a year.
“Prevailing wage has artificially raised the cost of construction for projects funded with tax dollars,” he said, specifically pointing to construction of school buildings. “…I just don’t think it’s right that taxpayers pay more than private industry for their construction.”
But prevailing wage supporters say the law guarantees fair wages for skilled trades workers, and they dispute projections of possible taxpayer savings.
“Prevailing wage works,” said Sen. Rebekah Warren, D-Ann Arbor. “It has given us quality construction. It has given us quality wages for the trades people that built this state and literally continue do so everyday.”