A labor movement in the house
June 25th, 2007 by Eric
There has been a trend in this country over the past couple of decades that makes my blood boil. (The 90 plus-degree heat in June in upstate New York might be contributing as well.) I’m not talking about the rise and fall in popularity of leg warmers and sweater vests. No, ever since Reagan took his acting career to the Oval Office, there has been an unprecedented anti-labor movement in this country. The privileged and the über-rich have become even more beau monde and über-richer, all while the honest workers who actually turn the American wheels work longer and harder for less money and fewer benefits.
This extends further than just the Wal-Marts and Exxon-Mobiles; smaller corporations and even small businesses have adopted many of those same rebarbative business practices in order to stay in stride with the “big boys.” There is even a multi-million dollar anti-labor lobbying business dedicated to spreading lies about unions
But for the first time in a great while there is a bill up for a vote in the Senate to dam up that torrent anti-labor river. It’s called Employee Free Choice Act and, according to the AFL-CIO and AmericanRightsAtWork.org, this bill would:
- Establish stronger penalties for violation of employee rights when workers seek to form a union and during first-contract negotiations.
- Provide mediation and arbitration for first-contract disputes.
- Allow employees to form unions by signing cards authorizing union representation.
- Force employers to stop dragging out contract negotiations.
If you’re fluent in “Lawyer-ese,” you can peruse the full bill here.
The aforementioned American Rights At Work group has put together a petition to Congress to support this progressive, yet bi-partisan legislation. It only takes a second, okay, maybe ten seconds, but time is of the essence here. Hop on over to the site (don’t let your boss see you) and add your signature. They are aiming for 30,000 e-signatures and are only a couple thousand short. Let’s have the Progressive Wednesday community give them that push over the edge.
To make an even bigger impact, you can also contact your Senator or Representative by following this link. Either way, we need to do what we can to stem the tide, change the winds, stop the bleeding, reverse the flow… hey, just make progress.
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