Court says no limit to Michigan school union resignations

SAGINAW (AP) — The Michigan Supreme Court has cleared the way for public school employees to quit a union at any time.

The court last week rejected an appeal from the Michigan Education Association, known as the MEA. It means a 2017 appeals court decision will stand.

The appeals court said restricting school union resignations to just one month a year conflicts with the Legislature’s goal of giving employees more choices under Michigan’s right-to-work law.

The law says workers can’t be forced to support a union to keep a job. The MEA had argued that the resignation rule should be an internal union matter.

The cases involved schools in Saginaw, Standish, Grand Blanc and Battle Creek. The appeals began after a series of decisions by the Michigan Employment Relations Commission.