An injury to one American worker is an injury to all.
From "Pipe Fitter Speaks Out for Employee Free Choice Act"
On Sept. 1, Michael Day, a retired member of the Plumbers and Pipe Fitters, wrote a letter to the Baton Rouge (La.) Advocate in support of the Employee Free Choice Act. Another reader, Kyle Johnston, wrote to criticize Day’s position. This is Day’s response, which was published in the Advocate Sept. 16.
Mr. Kyle Johnston should read my Sept. 1 letter, “Union pipe fitter defends bill,” again. Mr. Johnston seems to be confused about the Employee Free Choice Act, among other things. Cards for union recognition by law can be handed out and signed by interested workers now.
The company the employees are working for doesn’t have to recognize the will of the majority of employees.
The Employee Free Choice Act empowers the majority of employees to decide on whether to have representation or not. The Employee Free Choice Act has oversight. The bill is a fast, fair and seamless way to join a union or not.
The Employee Free Choice Act only takes away a private ballot from an intimidating employer.
I never wrote that all corporations were thugs. I stand by my words as far as Wal-Mart being corporate thugs. Wal-Mart has produced a manual outlining tactics for store managers to use to stop their employees from joining a union.
The manual and current labor law have served Wal-Mart well. Why doesn’t one Wal-Mart out of the thousands of Wal-Marts in the United States have a union contract?
Answer, because of current labor laws that are open to employer intimidation and lawsuits that go on for years after an overwhelming vote for a union shop by the employees.
How many times must Wal-Mart thumb its nose at labor laws before it’s OK to call Wal-Mart what it is: a corporate thug?
As long as there are corporations like Wal-Mart, there is a need for unions, one collective voice of employees to speak to the world’s largest retailer.
The Employee Free Choice Act makes that voice easier to gain.
It seems for Mr. Johnston as long as he can go to Wal-Mart and buy his high-quality goods at a low price he’ll be happy, and silly me for thinking Wal-Mart was the place to buy Christmas gifts for family members I’m not getting along with.
Michael D. Day
union pipe fitter
Baton Rouge(As part of the AFL-CIO’s Million Member Mobilization, more than 669,000 people have signed postcards to present to the new president and Congress to let them know that working families across America want them to immediately enact the Employee Free Choice Act. You can show your support for the Employee Free Choice Act by clicking here to sign our online card.)
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