Tri-City Sun

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has ordered everyone in the state of Michigan to "Stay Home, Stay Safe," but eventually as the number of COVID-19 cases decreases substantially, people will start going back to work.

When that happens, Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey (R-Clarklake) and Sen. Ken Horn (R-Frankenmuth) want to make sure everyone starts practicing “Safe Behavior for Safe Workplaces.”

A bipartisan senate work group with that name has been formed to gather recommendations on how to keep people safe as they transition back into the workforce, according to MiSenateGOP.

The work group will talk to members of the community, businesses and hospitals to find out what best practices should be put in place and how to make sure workers follow them. The information will be gathered remotely.  

Horn and Shirkey believe it is important for Michiganders to get back to work. “There are tremendous financial and psychological impacts to people from being out of work," Shirkey said. "Without the option to maintain employment, many of our citizens will experience extreme mental stress and that in turn can manifest itself as physical ailments, a weakened immune system and tense domestic environments," he told MiSenateGOP.

Businesses across the state have suffered since the pandemic began, and Horn believes they may continue to be impacted for months to come. 

"As soon as we can safely do so, we need to get people back to work and get our economy back on track,” Horn said, according to MiSenateGOP.

The following senators are participating in the work group: Sen. Ken Horn (R-Frankenmuth), Sen. Wayne Schmidt (R-Traverse City), Sen. Curt VanderWall (R-Ludington), Sen. Stephanie Chang (D-Detroit), Sen. Sylvia Santana (D-Detroit) and Sen. Jeremy Moss (D-Southfield).