No more union dues for Mich. day care providers

DETROIT (AP) -- The state of Michigan will stop deducting union dues from thousands of people who provide child care at home, an official announced Tuesday, ending an arrangement created under a previous governor that sparked lawsuits over whether mandatory membership violates free speech rights. Under the policy change, the 16,500 providers would keep millions of dollars in union dues that had gone to United Auto Workers and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees. The providers, none of whom are on the state payroll, receive government subsidies for watching children from low-income families.