Military Veterans Proud to Join Fight for Employee Free Choice

U.S. veterans have joined the long list of supporters outside the union movement who are calling on Congress to pass the Employee Free Choice Act.

In a dozen states, the organization VoteVets and the AFL-CIO Union Veterans Council are teaming up to host rallies, roundtable discussions and other events to talk about economic priorities, with an emphasis on Employee Free Choice.

"The freedom to organize is an American value, one of the many values we veterans fought to protect," said Jon Soltz, an Iraq war veteran and chair of VoteVets.org. "Past generations of veterans were able to enter the middle class because unions were there to fight for fair wages and benefits. The Employee Free Choice Act ensures that veterans and civilians in the workforce will continue to get a fair shake, which is why we're proud to support it."

That's the message veterans will carry to the events nationwide. "I fought for my country and it's not right that those of us who did are denied basic rights on the job and are just scraping by," said Chris Lane, president of CWA Local 2201 and a veteran of campaigns in Iraq, Kuwait and Somalia.

"When I signed my enlistment papers, my signature was my pledge to fight for freedom and the honor of my country," Lane said. "If my signature was good enough for that, it should be good enough for my government to show that I want a union in my workplace."

Retired Air Force Col. Richard Klass, president of the Veterans Alliance for Security and Democracy, said, "fairness is a fundamental American value and the current system is unfair to employees seeking to form a union."

The first of the veterans' events took place Wednesday in Virginia, with veterans across the state writing letters and calling their senators and representatives. Similar efforts will be underway soon in Arkansas, Pennsylvania, Nebraska, Indiana, Montana, Maine, Alaska, and other states.