Employee Free Choice Act, It's Time!!

So, I opened my e-mail and found this:

One Year Ago, We Made a MajorityOne year ago today, a majority of the U.S. Senate stood up for workers' rights by voting for the Employee Free Choice Act.

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 recognize that the Employee Free Choice is a vital part of restoring America's middle class.

As the Campaign for America's Future sums up the situation well today:

The federal government is blocking the freedom of working people to make their own decisions about joining a union. The current "election" system for union recognition is decidedly undemocratic. One side—the corporation—has all the power, controls the information workers receive, and routinely poisons the process by intimidating, harassing, coercing, and even firing people who try to organize unions.

We're going to continue to push to save the middle class in the next Congress. We hope to have the best shot yet at passing the Employee Free Choice Act next year by building on our existing majority in Congress, and we may even have a President who'll sign the bill. As CAF notes,

This is a good time to ask people running for office whether they stand with workers and their right to form unions or with the corporations and conservative enablers who would block this right.

Take the first step now. Declare your support for the Employee Free Choice Act by signing our petition.
--
Michael Whitney

Employee FREE CHOICE is important not only for current union members but it is even more vital for all of us working stiffs who have no hope of joining a union. I'm exempted myself now and boy, can I tell you that this week, I have so missed having the support of my former unions. Employee Free Choice won't help me, but it will help my mother, father and so many of my friends who are afraid to join unions or are afraid that they'll get screwed during the "secret" ballot elections and the run up to them. And this, is a pretty freaking bad problem in and of it self.

So, go forth and Organize. In the words of the imortal Joe Hill, Don't Mourn, ORGANIZE.