Dear Colleagues,
As you have certainly seen from the heavy email traffic that has been coming your way, our advocacy efforts have not lagged since the completion of the state budget. And, not surprisingly, the action has shifted to the federal arena.
One of the most important results of the election last November was that the nation elected a very strongly pro-union president. Joe Biden is committed to strengthening worker organizations, and now we need to act to support his efforts.
The most important of the pro-union legislative efforts of the past several decades is being considered by Congress right now. And that’s why I’m writing to you today. It is imperative that we all do all that we can to show our collective support for the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act. The PRO Act will, if passed, significantly increase worker empowerment by:
- Holding corporations accountable for union-busting.
- Protecting workers’ rights to form and join unions, including in new industries like Big Tech.
- Repealing “right to work” laws.
There are additional details here.
The House of Representatives passed the PRO Act on March 9. President Biden is ready to sign the PRO Act into law if it gets through the Senate to his desk. Together we can help amplify the call from our union siblings across the AFL CIO for passage of the PRO Act and here is how:
- Join an event during the PRO Act week of Actions (April 26 – May 1)
- Tell your senators to vote YES on the PRO Act:
- Use our Social Media kit, which also features AFL-CIO social media materials, to post on your social media accounts about the PRO Act
- Endorse the PRO Act by adding your name here.
- Last, ask your colleagues, family, and friends to take these five easy steps as well, including this one to keep sharing the message and strengthen our call for action now.
This is a generational opportunity to ensure that all barriers to the right to organize are removed. The social and economic protections that are realized through a union contract are undeniable, and it is past time that every worker be given protections against racial and gender wage discrimination and be guaranteed due-process and dignity at their workplace.
As President Biden recently stated this legislation will allow us to “seize the opportunity to build a future that reflects working people’s courage and ambition and offers not only good jobs with a real choice to join a union – but the dignity, equity, shared prosperity and common purpose the hardworking people who built this country and make it run deserve.”
I am so proud of our union and truly believe that everyone who is part of the working class deserves what we have achieved. I will fight for these protections, for this legislation to reach President Biden’s desk, and I hope that you will join me. This is our chance to make history and grow the power of all unions and workers everywhere in our country!
Solidarity forever!
Fred