Who’s losing out in this sputtering economy?

Not corporate CEOs. Too many of them have made sure to secure a golden parachute for themselves while workers face soaring healthcare costs, foreclosures, and an uncertain future.

The Employee Free Choice Act would help level the playing field and get our economy back on track. That's why last week we launched a huge campaign to get one million people to support this bill and tell Congress it’s time for change.

We're already at 20,695 signatures and we think we can reach 30,000 by Monday! We need you to be one of them. 

If you've already signed the petition, can you tell 10 friends about our campaign?

A robust middle class. Economic growth and shared prosperity. The American Dream. None are possible without good union jobs that protect workers.

That's why we need the Employee Free Choice Act - critical legislation that would give more workers a way to form unions and negotiate for better wages, health care, and working conditions. American Rights at Work is teaming up with hundreds of groups and unions to launch a massive campaign: One Million Strong for the Employee Free Choice Act.

We're going to show the new President and Congress that there are one million people who want to give hardworking families a chance to get ahead.

Why is this bill so important? It's plain as day: workers are struggling in this country.

While working on John Edwards' presidential campaign, I met working people across the country struggling just to make ends meet. For some time now, the financial hardships experienced by men and women in the heartland have been ignored or even overlooked by politicians and pundits alike in Washington. With last Friday's news that the nation's unemployment rate jumped to 5.5 percent in May, the highest monthly rise in two decades, this is no longer the case. Those inside the beltway are finally starting to come to terms and focus on this serious economic crisis.

Our economy is headed on the wrong track and taking good, hard-working people with it. Unemployment is rising through the roof, inflation and energy prices are skyrocketing, and a tragic number of Americans are losing their homes to foreclosure due to the housing and credit crisis. Now more than ever before, we need to continue our efforts to preserve America's middle class. Workers need political solutions that work for them, and they need political leaders who have strength and courage to get them through these tough times.

Bill Belichick knows the cost of breaking the rules. The coach of the New England Patriots was forced to cough up $500,000--about 12% of his annual salary--for spying on his opponents during the NFL's season opener. The league's punishment didn't stop there - the Patriots also had to pay a quarter-million dollar fine and give up at least one draft pick. Discipline was swift and severe. All in all, the punishment was the NFL's biggest ever, and it surely sent a message to every team in the league. The incident stands in stark contrast to another reported last week by the Las Vegas Sun involving Wal-Mart, the world's biggest employer.

Breaking news from the Senate: just a few moments ago, the Senate took up the Employee Free Choice Act (S.1041).  And we had incredible momentum today:  51 Senators stood up for workers’ rights!   However, 60 votes were needed to proceed on the bill at this time. (See how your Senators voted here.)

Mary Beth Maxwell, Executive Director of American Rights at Work, released the following statement after the vote: