A number of compelling editorial pieces published in recent weeks make a strong case for the Employee Free Choice Act: 

• New York Times columnist Bob Herbert discussed in an op-ed how crucial the freedom to form unions is to raising workers out of poverty, referencing the recommendations made by the Center for American Progress Task Force on Poverty in its recent report.

• Professor Peter Dreier of Occidental College, and Kelly Candaele, a trustee of the Los Angeles Community College District, co-authored a fantastic piece in The Chronicle of Higher Education, TomPaine.com, and AlterNet  about how all working people will gain from passage of the Employee Free Choice Act.

• Professor Thomas Kochan of MIT argued for why workers need their collective bargaining power strengthened in a special "Ending Poverty in America" edition of The American Prospect .

• Professor James Brudney of Ohio State University and author of the American Constitution Society issue brief on the power of neutrality and card check agreements, served as the "pro" voice in an Employee Free Choice Act debate in the editorial pages of The Columbus Dispatch.

A growing number of organizations outside of the labor movement care about workers' rights and the Employee Free Choice Act from the American Library Association to US Action.  Learn more about our allies here. 

If your organization has endorsed the Employee Free Choice Act or provided support for it, please let us know so we can add you to the site!

American Rights at Work will host a Senate briefing, "A Solution to the Middle Class Squeeze: The Employee Free Choice Act," on Monday, May 21st from 12:30-1:30pm.  The event will feature workers, our Executive Director Mary Beth Maxwell, and Wade Henderson, President and CEO, Leadership Conference on Civil Rights.

Two recently released reports make the case for the Employee Free Choice Act:   

• The Institute for America's Future co-released with Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA) "The Employee Free Choice Act Impact on Health Care and Pension Benefits," a new report demonstrating how the passage of the Employee Free Choice Act would significantly increase the number of workers receiving health and pension benefits.
  

• The Human Rights Watch May 1 report, "Discounting Rights: Wal-Mart's Violation of US Workers' Right to Freedom of Association," received media attention in high-profile outlets such as "The New York Times," "The Wall Street Journal," "The Washington Post," and "The Guardian" on its dramatic findings and the group's endorsement of the Employee Free Choice Act.

1.  Senate Introduces Employee Free Choice Act.  Momentum continues for the Employee Free Choice Act!  On Thursday, March 29, Sen. Edward Kennedy introduced the legislation – S. 1041 – in the Senate.  We now move toward building a majority of support in the Senate for this critical bill.

2.  1st Senate Hearing Held on Legislation to Protect Workers & Strengthen Middle Class.  On Tuesday, March 27, the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee held the Senate’s first hearing on the Employee Free Choice Act.  Testifiers included New York University Professor of Law Cynthia Estlund, Economic Policy Institute President Lawrence Mishel, and Errol Hohrein, who was fired for trying to form a union in his workplace.  As a result of his experience, Hohrein proclaimed “Labor law in this country is broken, it doesn’t support working people. We’re on the brink and no one’s looking out for us. It’s time for the government to do the right thing and pass the Employee Free Choice Act.”  Watch the webcast of the hearing.

The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee just announced it will hold the Senate’s first hearing on the Employee Free Choice Act on Tuesday, March 27 at 10 am in Dirksen 430.  The hearing will examine how the legislation will restore economic opportunity for working families.  Click here for more information, or to view the post-hearing transcripts when they become available. 

And while the Employee Free Choice Act has not yet been introduced in the Senate, you can let your Senators know how much you care about this legislation.  Write your Senators to co-sponsor the Employee Free Choice Act!

On March 1st the House of Representatives passed the Employee Free Choice Act!  Some 241 members, including 13 Republicans, supported the bill.  A majority of our elected officials stood up against a barrage of misinformation and hundreds of thousands of dollars of negative advertising to support the rights of millions of hard-working men and women.

Thanks to the tireless efforts of interfaith organizations, human rights groups, civil rights advocates, public interest organizations, academics, environmentalists, and our activists, working families won.

This is an incredible victory for all of us who care about a more just and fair society.  But this battle is not over yet.

To win back workers' rights, we need to ramp up our efforts for the upcoming Senate battle over this legislation.  By making a donation to American Rights at Work now, you'll help provide us with critical support for our efforts for the Senate debate.  These next few weeks could make the difference for America's workers—please donate today !

Our own Mary Beth Maxwell, Executive Director of American Rights at Work, was quoted for the piece:

"The notion that corporate lobbying coalitions and front groups are the new champions of workers' rights and democracy is laughable," Ms. Maxwell said.

Check out the whole article here.

If U.S. workers could earn higher wages, benefits, and better working conditions, who would be against them?

A powerful network of anti-union employers, conservative business associations, industry lobbying groups, and right-wing policy centers and policymakers seeks to shut down choice in the American workplace.  Get up-to-speed about the opponents of the Employee Free Choice Act by checking out our new backgrounder .

Congress gave love to workers on Valentine’s Day, when the House Education and Labor Committee approved H.R. 800, the Employee Free Choice Act.  Congratulations are in order as workers have now moved one step closer to being able to bargain for better wages, benefits, and working conditions.

Read the press release from Rep. George Miller, the lead sponsor in the House.

Professor Gordon Lafer testifies in support of the Employee Free Choice Act. House Subcommittee on Health, Education, and the Workforce, February 2007.

American Rights at Work brought the voices of workers and experts to the Hill to share why the right to organize is essential to preserving and growing America’s middle class.  On Friday, February 9, we hosted a general congressional briefing, "A Solution to the Middle Class Squeeze: The Employee Free Choice Act," to a packed Capitol Hill audience.

The event capped off a full week of events in which American Rights at Work staff, board members, and academics joined workers to participate in press events, hearings and briefings surrounding the introduction of the Employee Free Choice Act. 

At the briefing:

• Our Executive Director Mary Beth Maxwell summarized the obstacles facing workers who try to form a union;

• Author Beth Shulman described the essential role unions play in building the middle class;

• Political scientist Gordon Lafer, Ph.D, author of our report, "Free and Fair? How U.S. Labor Laws Fail U.S. Democratic Election Standards," highlighted why NLRB elections are in no way comparable to political elections.

Sharing their personal experiences were workers from Virginia, North Carolina, and California:

• Teresa Joyce , Cingular Wireless Customer Service Representative, experienced firsthand the difference between an employer that uses the law to intimidate and coerce its employees, and one that voluntarily abides by provisions included in the Employee Free Choice Act.

• Keith Ludlum, reinstated Smithfield Packing Company employee, was illegally fired for trying to form a union. The Operation Desert Storm vet had to wait 12 long years for the NLRB to order Smithfield to reinstate him.

• Ivo Camilo, retired Blue Diamond Growers vend pack operator, was fired when he exercised his right to join a union after 35 years as an exemplary employee.

These heroic workers also delivered powerful testimony on the need for the Employee Free Choice Act before the House Sub-Committee on Health, Employment, Labor and Pensions on February 8.