Can you imagine a CEO agreeing to work without a contract guaranteeing pay and benefits?
It would never happen. But when employers prevent a union from forming,
that's exactly what they're making employees do: work without a
contract.
All workers - not just CEOs - deserve fair wages, decent benefits,
and safe working conditions - but without a contract, many will never
get them. That's why we need the Employee Free Choice Act.
The One Million Strong campaign is picking up speed. More than 300,000 people have already signed our petition, but we can’t reach one million without you.
Passing the Employee Free Choice Act will make it easier for
millions of workers to negotiate a contract and have a good union job.
Why is that so important? Unions have always been the bedrock of
America’s middle class. With hardworking families feeling the squeeze
from economic policies that bail out billionaires but abandon workers,
it’s time to level the playing field.
We caught up with Amber Lee Ettinger—aka "Obama Girl"—last week, and asked for her thoughts on the Employee Free Choice Act. Check out this video we made:
This video shows what the Employee Free Choice Act is all about. Originally produced for SEIU at their international convention last month, this 8-minute movie explains what the Employee Free Choice Act is, why we need it, and who it'd help. If you've got eight minutes, sit back, press play, and pass on this video to friends and family.
On June 26, 2007 51 Senators joined 241 members of the House
in supporting this bill to restore the middle class. Unfortunately, a
procedural move by a minority of anti-worker Senators meant that the
chamber fell short of the 60 votes needed to send the bill to the
President.
At the time, American Rights at Work Executive Director Mary Beth Maxwell noted:
Anti-worker interests and legislators are standing in the way of
progress, but they won't prevail. It's no longer about if—it's about
when we restore workers' freedom to form unions. Hard-working men and women deserve a free choice and a fair chance at
forming a union. And a majority in Congress recognizes that the Employee
Free Choice Act is a vital part of restoring America's middle class.
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.
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 peoplewho 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.)
A growing, bipartisan coalition of policymakers supports the Employee
Free Choice Act, federal legislation that would ensure workers have a
free choice and a fair chance to form a union.
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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 
