LANSING, MI – Today, the Michigan AFL-CIO announced its formal endorsements for Michigan Court of Appeals candidates ahead of the November election. The formal endorsements include:
- Judge Noah Hood, District 1
- Judge Kristina Robinson Garrett, District 1
- Judge Sima Patel, District 2
- Judge Christopher Yates, District 3 (partial)
“Our union freedoms are under attack and Michiganders deserve a Court of Appeals that will rule on the side of working people, not wealthy corporations,” said Ron BIEBER, President of the Michigan AFL-CIO. “Now more than ever we need to ensure candidates that understand our working people’s issues are elected at every level of the judiciary. The Michigan AFL-CIO is proud to endorse these individuals who will make sure working people see true fairness on the bench.”
The Michigan AFL-CIO plans to communicate with its affiliate unions about these endorsements, and educate those union members about the many important worker protection cases and opinions that are decided by the Court of Appeals. Some of the recent cases that have come before the court include protections from workplace discrimination for sexual orientation and gender identity under the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act (Rouch World, LLC, et al.), reinstatement of the minimum wage and paid sick initiatives passed by voters in 2018 (Mothering Justice et al.), and access to reproductive healthcare and the enforcement of the 1931 abortion ban (Planned Parenthood of Michigan).
The Michigan AFL-CIO, Michigan’s largest labor organization, is a federation representing forty different labor organizations, eighteen different central labor councils, and eight constituency groups representing over 1 million union members and their families.
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