What People Are Saying: The Protecting the Right to Organize Act
WASHINGTON – This week, a bipartisan group of House and Senate Members introduced the Richard L. Trumka Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act of 2023 (H.R. 20), a comprehensive proposal to protect workers’ right to come together and bargain for higher wages, better benefits, and safer workplaces. Here is what leading advocates and experts are saying about the Richard L. Trumka Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act, H.R. 20:
President Joe Biden: “A union is about working people having each other’s backs, making sure you get the pay and benefits you deserve. That’s how we rebuild the middle class. Employers aren’t supposed to undermine that. The PRO Act will make sure your right to join one is protected. Pass it.”
Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi: “The right of workers to organize is a basic right that improves working families' lives & strengthens our economy. Richard Trumka was a champion of this right. Proud to support the PRO Act named in his honor, which empowers workers to fight for fair wages, benefits & dignity.”
President Liz Shuler, AFL-CIO: “The PRO Act is how we level the playing field. It is how we stop the intimidation, the lies. This is how we let workers, not wealthy corporations, decide for themselves if they want the power of a union.”
AFL-CIO: “For too long, employers have been able to violate the NLRA with impunity, routinely denying working people our basic right to join with co-workers for fairness on the job. According to the Economic Policy Institute, more than 60 million workers wanted to join a union in 2022 but couldn’t. As a result of this ongoing trend, the collective strength of workers to negotiate for better pay and benefits has eroded, and income inequality has reached levels we have not seen since the Great Depression. The PRO Act would restore the original intent of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) that gave working people a voice on the job so we can negotiate for higher wages, better benefits, a safe workplace and protection against discrimination.”
Communication Workers of America (CWA): “The PRO Act, just reintroduced in the House & Senate, is the most significant piece of pro-worker legislation we've seen in decades. We're not going to stop fighting until we get it passed.”
AFSCME: “Change begins with the Richard Trumka Protecting the Right to Organize Act. This vital piece of legislation would hold union busters accountable and allow thousands of working people to experience the union difference. It would give them the opportunity for a true voice on the job, leading to fairer wages and safer workplaces. In a country with rampant wealth and income inequality, unions are a proven solution. This isn’t just about economic justice; this is about democracy. Workers deserve the freedom to form strong unions and to use their voices at work without fear. We urge Congress to pass the PRO Act swiftly.”
International Brotherhood of Teamsters: “More workers are forming unions than ever before and yet, we continue to face challenges around income inequality and rising healthcare prices, I corporations take advantage of workers in the name of maximizing profits. American workers need the PRO Act to solidify the gains they have made and to fight back against systemic inequalities.”
United Steel Workers (USW): “With some of the most significant labor reforms the country has seen in over eighty-eight years, the PRO Act targets loopholes in worker organizing laws. The legislation, should it become law, would help ensure companies fairly negotiate and are held accountable during the collective bargaining process. It also protects the achievements of newly organized workers by establishing a much-needed process for first contract between companies and newly certified unions, allowing for mediation, and when necessary, binding arbitration. When workers choose to use systems set up by our government that allow for a voice at the job, they should work in a timely and efficient manner. The PRO Act will re-establish that pact between Government, employer, and worker.”
National Nurses United (NNU): “Across the country, nurses have been subject to intimidation and retaliation from their employers because of their efforts to unionize. The PRO Act would provide critical protections for nurses who want to organize collectively and, in turn, would help improve patient care. The dire need for this legislation has been made all the clearer during this pandemic. Due to employer neglect, nurses have been forced to struggle together for the most basic safety protections at their hospitals and clinics. Union organizing has led to improvements in infectious disease protocols, staffing levels, workplace violence prevention programs, and safe patient handling programs, all of which directly improve patient care.”
American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE): “With the re-introduction of the PRO Act, members of Congress face a choice. Legislators can stand with American workers whose legal rights are being trampled by private employers to the detriment of the nation. Or they can stand with the ultra-wealthy elites whose status depends on the continued oppression and exploitation of working-class Americans.”
United Automobile Workers (UAW): “For too long, employers have been able to violate the law with little consequence, routinely denying working people their basic right to join with coworkers and have a voice in the workplace. Time and time again, workers have fought for a union only to be met with coercion, retaliation, and intimidation by employers seeking to prevent workers from exercising their fundamental rights such as illegally firing workers, holding captive audience meetings, and threatening to close plants. The PRO Act would address these and other impediments. UAW urges Congress to pass the Richard L. Trumka PRO Act and send it to President Biden’s desk for signature.”
House Labor Caucus: “We are proud to support the Richard L. Trumka Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act. This critical, bipartisan legislation will ensure all workers have the right to organize and collectively raise their voices for dignity and respect. The PRO Act would reverse decades of anti-union policies, strengthening the labor movement. It empowers workers to join a union, holds companies accountable for obstructing unionization efforts by creating enforceable penalties, and ensures free and fair union elections. This bill will help make sure every worker that wants to join a union can. Union membership is an essential pathway to the middle class and with the PRO Act, we can ensure every worker’s rights are protected.”
Unemployed Workers United: “Thanks to Rep. Bobby Scott and Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick for standing with workers to introduce the PRO Act in Congress Standing up for working people is not a Democratic or Republican issue - it is an American issue.”
Laborers’ International Union of North America (LiUNA): “The PRO Act would empower millions of Americans by strengthening protections for workers who choose to join a union and bargain for higher wages, better benefits, and safer working conditions. Too often when workers join with co-workers to form a union, employers work against them in every way possible – from retaliation and dismissal to bad faith bargaining. The PRO Act will level the playing field for America’s working men and women. LIUNA urges Congress to pass this important legislation.”
For the bill text of the PRO Act, click here.
For a fact sheet on the PRO Act, click here.
For a section-by-section summary of the PRO Act, click here.
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