The Chamber passed legislation that aims to strengthen workers’ rights to unionize in a 225-206 party line vote on Tuesday night.
The Law for the Protection of the Right to Organize – presented by Rep. Bobby Scott
Robert (Bobby) Cortez ScottThis week: Congress ready to send 0.9 trillion coronavirus bill to Biden NASA names headquarters building after agency’s first black engineer, House Democrats, to maintain minimum wage increase on bill COVID-19 relief law for Friday poll MORE (D-Va.) – would implement penalties for companies that violate labor laws and restrict labor laws in 27 states by blocking laws that allow employees not to pay union dues.
The project also aims to change the way workers are classified and includes language designed to ensure that workers’ rights are not denied due to their immigration status.
Proponents argue that it is a necessary step to ensure that workers are not denied protection in the workplace.
“Unions are essential to rebuild America’s middle class and improve the lives of workers and their families. Unfortunately, over the past 70 years, union membership has fallen to the lowest level since shortly after the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) was enacted. This decline is not the result of workers’ choices. It is obvious that the NLRA is too weak to defend workers’ rights against intensified anti-union attacks by rich special interests, ”said Scott in a statement.
“The Law to Protect the Right to Organize makes the most significant updates to the NLRA in 85 years, providing new tools to protect workers from intimidation and retaliation, introducing significant penalties for companies that violate workers’ rights and allowing workers to be free and fair and secure union elections. “
The move was met with strong resistance from Republicans, who argued that it would represent an unnecessary burden on businesses and would have a negative impact on job numbers.
Chamber Education and Work Committee – Ranking Member Rep. Virginia Foxx
Virginia Ann Foxx Republicans call for investigation into impact of school closures on children with disabilities Biden fires Trump-appointed lawyer who refused to relinquish the Biden removal labels from the ‘extreme’ NLRB general council to the Chamber of Commerce MORE (RN.C.) countered Scott’s claim that it would help strengthen the middle class.
“I’ve heard Democrats argue that it is the unions that build the middle class,” she said before the vote. “No, the unions did not build the middle class. Entrepreneurs and individual workers in this country have built the middle class – and what this bill does is take away their freedom. “
The legislation faces an uphill battle in the upper house, where it would need to garner 60 votes to be sanctioned.