| September 28, 2021 
 For 18 summers, Howard Samuels has made the trip from Jamaica to the historic Mission Point Resort on Mackinac Island. “Mission Point is my home away from home,” he said. “When I go home, I look forward to coming back.” Samuels is one of thousands of people from across the globe legally working in Michigan through temporary visas. Migrant labor drives Michigan’s economy, particularly in tourism and agriculture industries, which rely on workers from outside the U.S. to fill seasonal jobs. Michigan is facing a labor shortage as the population gets older and businesses struggle to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. Easing restrictions and creating a more welcome environment for immigrants could be the key to addressing Michigan’s labor shortage, which isn’t expected to improve anytime soon. CONTINUE READING ►Michigan's high-tech industries need foreign workers to drive future growth  The Republican faithful gathered for their semi-annual conference on Mackinac Island over the weekend, filling the conference’s traditional role of stoking optimism in the party and firing people up ahead to start working to elect Republicans in 2022. But some attendees and candidates aren’t fully over a different year: 2020. Former President Donald Trump lost the election in Michigan and nationally in 2020. Lawsuits attempting to overturn the results of the election in states including Michigan have failed. President Joe Biden is president. But not everybody is convinced by that set of facts. READ MORE  Michigan received the fourth-most refugees of any state in the last decade. Michigan admitted 30,467 refugees from 52 countries since 2010, according to the U.S. Department of State, and more than half immigrated from Iraq. Michigan was a top destination for refugees during a spike caused by the Iraq War, and the state is expected to be a key player in the effort to resettle refugees seeking a new start after the Afghanistan War ended last month. Fewer refugees were allowed entry into Michigan and the United States at large during the last four years of the Trump administration, but the surge of Afghan asylum seekers and new policies from President Joe Biden are expected to reverse the trend. READ MORE
 Last month, we asked MLive readers to nominate their favorite places to eat out, take a vacation, shop or even book a spa appointment. And wow, our readers had lots of opinions. Nearly 10,000 nominations rolled into our very first Michigan’s Best Reader’s Choice polls. Now that all the nominations are in, it’s time for readers to look at the top choices in each of our three regions and cast votes to select the winners. Voting runs through Oct. 6. Our readers are invited to cast one vote per category, per day, per email address. The winners will be announced online and in a special print section on Nov. 14. VOTE HERE ►Eminem Mom's Spaghetti Diner opening in Detroit with s'ghetti sandwiches, store for 'Stans'  Local health officials are again calling on Michigan’s leadership to institute a statewide mask mandate for K-12 educational institutions to curb coronavirus transmission and keep students in-person for the 2021-22 academic year. The Michigan Association for Local Public Health sent a letter Friday, Sept. 24, to Michigan Department of Health and Human Services Director Elizabeth Hertel, asking for a mandate “at the very least until this COVID-19 wave has passed.” It was the second “urgent call to leadership” from the association this month. READ MORE ►COVID-19 outbreak at St. Charles Community Schools leads to mask requirement Get your local news 24/7 Connect with MLive
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