When the Michigan state legislature passed House Bill 4052 (2015), nicknamed the “Death Star Bill,” it preempted local governments from implementing a range of policies that would benefit workers, including minimum wages, fair scheduling regulations, paid leave mandates, and prevailing wage laws. Fair scheduling laws would have benefited 38,702 retail and food service workers in Detroit, 77% of which are Black. Read more from Wolfe, J, Hickey, S, Kamper, D, Cooper, D. Preempting progress in the heartland: State lawmakers in the Midwest prevent shared prosperity and racial, gender, and immigrant justice by interfering in local policymaking. Economic Policy Institute. October 2021. https://www.epi.org/publication/preemption-in-the-midwest/.

The abuse of preemption that has suppressed communities of color in the Midwest has its roots in the segregation policies implemented in response to the Great Migration. Research shows that the abuse of state preemption in the Midwest is also widespread, second only to the South. State lawmakers in the Midwest, who are majority white and male, have used preemption to deny local governments the ability to improve job quality and housing stability through minimum wage increases, fair scheduling laws, and paid leave requirements. These preemptive laws disproportionately affect people of color, women, immigrants, and workers who are paid low wages. Read more from Wolfe, J, Hickey, S, Kamper, D, Cooper, D. Preempting progress in the heartland: State lawmakers in the Midwest prevent shared prosperity and racial, gender, and immigrant justice by interfering in local policymaking. Economic Policy Institute. October 2021. https://www.epi.org/publication/preemption-in-the-midwest/.

Research shows that the abuse of state preemption is particularly prevalent in the South, where preemption is often a continuation of “state-sanctioned policies and practices rooted in racism and designed to uphold white supremacy” by suppressing the political power of communities of color.  Time and time again, overwhelmingly white, male, and conservative state legislatures have blocked the ability of local communities – often Black and Brown communities – from responding to the needs and values of their residents. These communities have been prevented from enacting policies on a multitude of work-related issues, such as minimum wages, fair scheduling laws, paid leave programs, local hire laws, prevailing wage laws, and other workplace protections. Read more from Blair H, Cooper D, Wolfe J, Worker J. Preempting progress: State interference in local policymaking prevents people of color, women, and low-income workers from making ends meet in the South. Economic Policy Institute. September 2020. https://www.epi.org/publication/preemption-in-the-south.