| August 18, 2021 
 Experts say that as the way people work changes – from wage increases to remote work – one way employees seek to gain power in the workplace is by organizing. And right now, union membership in Michigan is growing. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 15.2% of Michigan’s wage and salary workers were union members in 2020, up from 13.6% in 2019. The recent numbers buck the larger trend: there have been small upticks and drops, but overall, union membership in Michigan has been on a decades-long decline. So, what’s behind the growth in 2020? The pandemic is a factor you can’t ignore.READ MORE ►Video: Michigan workers turned to unions during the pandemic  The city of Ann Arbor has banned the sale of furs. Stores like Bivouac Ann Arbor have been given one year to sell off remaining new fur inventory. “This is yesterday’s business,” said Council Member Jeff Hayner, D-1st Ward, lead sponsor of the proposal. Hayner called it a logical next step for humanity and animal rights to push back against the fur trade. “Furriers need to go the way of the buggy-whip makers, you might say,” he said. “And they will and they are, and the world will be better for it.” There are, of course, exceptions. READ MORE ►Shroom festival planned in Ann Arbor to celebrate psychedelic awareness month  The parents of the man who led police on a chase that resulted in the death of a Kalamazoo County Sheriff’s deputy over the weekend said Tuesday their son, who also died, had been tormented by invasive and irrational thoughts for years. “This was another senseless and terrible tragedy that the American people have witnessed by one suffering from delusional and irrational thoughts," a statement from his parents reads. “It is (our) hope that we, as a community, can find a way to help those in need.” ►Law enforcement, community hold vigil to honor fallen Kalamazoo County sheriff’s deputy
 A new assessment on the safety of the Mackinac Bridge is coming after two recent security threats prompted bridge closures. During a House Transportation Committee meeting Tuesday, Michigan State Police Lt. Colonel Chris Kelenske told lawmakers the Michigan Intelligence Operations Center is working with the Department of Homeland Security and the Mackinac Bridge Authority to schedule a “full-scale, updated physical assessment” of the bridge before the end of 2021. READ MORE  It hasn't been easy for parents or teachers or children to be away from school this long. And things are perfect yet. But for those that are going back for the first time in a long time - even if masked - the magic is real. Watch Beecher elementary roll out the red carpet for their students' return. VIDEO ►‘Little Miss Flint’ gives away 1,000 backpacks to local children Get your local news 24/7 Connect with MLive
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