In Support of the Employee Free Choice Act

WHEREAS, employers frequently violate labor laws in order to deny their employees the right to organize or the ability to fairly negotiate a contract; and

WHEREAS, majority authorization is the fairest and most democratic way to join a union; and

WHEREAS, this legislation will take the choice of how to form unions away from employers and return that choice to its rightful place in the hands of workers; and

WHEREAS, penalties for employer abuses are too weak to encourage appropriate employer behavior; and

WHEREAS, the Employee Free Choice Act, which would restore some of the dignity and power of the American worker, has yet to be passed into law; therefore be it

RESOLVED, that the Massachusetts AFL-CIO strongly supports the Employee Free Choice Act and thanks the legislators who voted for this crucial piece of legislation in the U.S. House and Senate, particularly its lead sponsor Senator Edward Kennedy, as well as Governor Deval Patrick and the many constitutional officers, and State Senators and Representatives who signed a pledge to support the Act; and be it further

RESOLVED, that although the Employee Free Choice Act was not passed into law in 2007, the Massachusetts AFL-CIO will continue to push for the bill to be brought up in the 2008 legislative season, where we expect that it will be passed and signed into law by the next President, due in large part to our political efforts prior to the 2008 elections; and be it finally

RESOLVED, that the President of the Massachusetts AFL-CIO will transmit a copy of this resolution and other information to all relevant parties to demonstrate its ardent support for the Employee Free Choice Act.

Submitted By:
Robert J. Haynes, President
Louis A. Mandarini, Jr., Secretary-Treasurer