Employee Free Choice Act

Floor Speech

EMPLOYEE FREE CHOICE ACT -- (House of Representatives - March 01, 2007)

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Mr. WELCH of Vermont. Madam Speaker, our American democracy depends on a strong middle class, and our middle class has relied on institutions that support working Americans. The American institution that has done more to strengthen the backbone of our democracy and the rights of American workers is the labor union.

At a time when you would least expect it, the middle-class American is losing ground. Corporate profits are up. Executive pay is up. Productivity of our workers is up. And yet our middle class is under assault. Worker incomes haven't kept pace with rising costs for education, health care, energy, transportation, child care, and housing. We haven't faced greater income inequality since before the Great Depression.

Why is it that as our economy grows and CEOs have unfettered freedom to negotiate lavish contracts, our workers are left behind?

Many believe, as I do, that strengthening the rights and opportunities of workers will increase opportunities for all and strengthen the American economy. Our economy has done best when all share in a stake in its success and all share in its rewards.

Congress can help our workers achieve better wages, benefits, and working conditions. We can help level the playing field. The Employee Free Choice Act is based on the simple proposition that workers should have a protected right to organize when they choose to do so. That right must be straightforward, enforceable, and fair. If a majority of workers sign up for a union, they form a union. It is that simple.

Congress today can play a positive role in promoting the vibrancy of our democracy and helping workers get ahead. Last month we began to do so by raising the minimum wage, making college more affordable, and lowering the cost of prescription drugs. Today we act to protect the rights of workers as they pursue the American Dream.

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