FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
News from Progress Michigan
January 6, 2016
Contact: Sam Inglot, 616-916-0574, sam@progressmichigan.org
Bill Schuette Joins Lawsuit to Lower Wages, Take Away Healthcare Worker Overtime
Amicus brief chooses for-profit agencies over Michigan workers
LANSING — On December 23, 2015, Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette submitted an amicus brief to the Supreme Court in support of for-profit home care agencies’ attempt to lower wages and end overtime protections for home healthcare workers. The case is an attempt to overturn U.S. Labor Department rules that give these healthcare workers basic labor rights.
“Once again Attorney General Schuette is using his position as the people’s lawyer to do the bidding of large out-of-state corporations,” said Lonnie Scott, executive director of Progress Michigan. “People who provide home care should have the same workplace protections as all other workers.”
A study by PHI National shows that the vast majority home care workers are female (91 percent) and a majority of the workers are minorities (56 percent). Despite, or because of this fact, Bill Schuette still submitted his brief.
“Bill Schuette’s crusades against women and working people have diverged in this case,” Scott continued. “Instead of standing up for the rights of hardworking health care workers in Michigan, Schuette once again is on-duty for big business- in this instance the home care industry. It’s time for Schuette to stop being a show horse for his corporate donors and start being a workhorse for Michigan workers.”
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