On Tuesday, Michigan Court of Appeals Judge Douglas Shapiro declared that the "adopt and amend" process used by the Michigan legislature in 2018 was unconstitutional. The Republican dominated legislature adopted and then quickly voted to weaken voter-initiated initiatives to raise the state minimum wage and require employers to provide earned paid sick leave. Judge Shapiro's ruling restores the original language of the two initiatives, raising the state minimum wage to $12/hour from the current $9.87 and requiring many more employers to provide earned paid sick leave to their workers.

AAUW of Michigan endorsed the 2018 petition drives to raise the minimum wage and enact an earned paid sick leave benefit for employees (and collected signatures for the measures). In 2019, AAUW of Michigan partnered with ACLU of Michigan to file an amicus brief to request an advisory opinion from the Michigan Supreme Court opposing the legislature's “adopt and amend” action that gutted the two measures. 

AAUW of Michigan is proud to be your advocate in Lansing by supporting petitions and legislation that promote AAUW's Public Policy Priorities including economic security, education, and individual rights for women and girls.