Employee Free Choice Act Critical to 'Taking Back America'

"Passage of the Employee Free Choice Act is essential to setting a political agenda that benefits working Americans after the 2008 elections," CWA President Larry Cohen said in an address to more than 1,000 participants at the "Take Back America" conference in Washington, D.C., this week.

"Passing EFCA and restoring workers' collective bargaining rights is a critical part of any agenda to take back America," said Cohen explaining that "bargaining rights are the key to creating and sustaining a middle class standard of living." He decried the fact that the percentage of Americans with collective bargaining rights is a fraction of what it is in virtually every other industrialized country, and even among newly emerging democracies like South Africa or Brazil.

Participants at the conference, sponsored by the Campaign for America's Future, come from labor unions and other progressive organizations who are developing a policy agenda for Congress and the next president that focuses on the needs of America's working families. Issues high on the group's agenda – affordable health care, fair trade, fair economic policies, quality education, and retirement security – mirror those of CWA.

Stating that labor's success at the bargaining table and in the political arena "have elevated workplace conditions and middle class standards throughout America," CWA's president asked conference participants to pledge to get 10 percent of their members to sign EFCA support cards as part of labor's "Million Member Mobilization for the Employee Free Choice Act."

"These cards are the faces of America and represent a pledge to participate in our movement to rebuild the labor movement," said Cohen. These cards, along with photos of the workers who signed them, will be presented to Congress after the November elections.