No Relief In Sight For Home Health Care Workers

Michigan's “home health care dues skim” will continue at least through Sept. 20, according to information from the governor's office.

An email from Gov. Rick Snyder's office, responding to a question on the “skim” was forwarded to Capitol Confidential from a reader. In it, the reason for continuing to take dues from the checks of so-called home health care workers was explained as follows:

The Interlocal Agreement grants the MQC3 the authority to bargain collectively and enter into agreements with labor organizations. The MQC3 entered into a collective bargaining agreement with the Service Employees International Union Healthcare Michigan (SEIU). The collective bargaining agreement remains in effect through September 20, 2012 unless amended by mutual written agreement.

Capitol Confidential contacted the governor's office and asked if that means the dues flow will stop on that date. The governor's office has not responded to requests for answers to that question.

If the answer is yes, it would be the first confirmation that the administration has a date in mind for ending the “skim.”

Under a scheme perpetrated in 2005, tens of thousands of so-called home health care workers were forced into joining the SEIU. As a result, dues from the taxpayer-provided checks of those who care for homebound patients has been flowing to the union. To date, more than $30 million has been taken from workers. More than $613,000 has been taken from workers' paychecks since Gov. Snyder signed a bill to stop the scheme without forcing the immediate end to the deductions.

The email forwarded from the governor's office also included the following:

Home help providers have the right under the collective bargaining agreement to decline membership in the SEIU and must then pay a uniformly assessed agency fee.

That agency fee is at least 65 percent of the amount of the dues, and since workers don't have the right to opt-out of a union in Michigan, all workers must pay at least that amount to remain employed.