DETROIT - A judge has rejected a challenge to a key portion of a Michigan law that allows workers to have a job without giving financial support to a union.
Detroit federal Judge Stephen Murphy III says so-called right-to-work laws "are a valid exercise" of state power. He ruled Monday in a lawsuit against the state of Michigan by the Michigan AFL-CIO.
Murphy upheld a part of the 2013 law that forbids making union support a condition for employment. He says it's not trumped by federal law. At the same time, the judge refused to dismiss other parts of the union's lawsuit.
Attorney General Bill Schuette calls the decision a "great victory" for workers. AFL-CIO attorney Andrew Nickelhoff says the case isn't over.
