Consumer Law

Speaking of good articles...

By Kia Franklin

While I'm at it giving kudos, I thought I'd add these two pieces explaining the benefits of the Employee Free Choice Act, which we've only mentioned briefly on TortDeform.

First, Amy Traub (also of DMI) has a great post on DMIBlog, EFCA 101: How We Can Bail Ourselves Out. She explains:

As we look for a path back to the economic good times we?ve also got to face the fact that, for a lot of Americans, the good times of the 21st Century so far weren?t actually that good. At the peak of the last economic cycle, during a time of high productivity and soaring corporate profits, middle-class Americans still hadn?t recovered the ground lost in the last downturn. We earned less, borrowed more to make ends meet, and were even less likely to have employer-sponsored health care. Something is deeply wrong with that picture.

What this tells us is that working people don?t have enough power in the labor market to ensure that their incomes keep pace with the rising cost of living ? even during the best of times. Historically, one powerful way to build that power has been through labor unions.

...Organizing a union is supposed to be a right in the United States, but legal protection for organizing has eroded over time. A bill called The Employee Free Choice Act would restore that right, streamlining the process for employees to decide on union representation. Predictably, corporations that would rather not pay higher wages or contribute to employee health care oppose the bill fiercely. But it's a fight worth having. In times like these we need not only a bailout, but the tools to bail ourselves out. Once a stimulus plan is in place, we need the Employee Free Choice Act.

Read the full blogpost here. Amy explains how strong unions support a healthy middle class, and she also gives some background about the groups that tend to attack measures to support and strengthen the ability to unionize.

Second, Seth Michaels at AFL-CIO links to a piece written by businessman Joe Diecedue, which argues for the business/employer-side interest in supporting the EFCA. From that post:

Written from the perspective of a businessman and employer who knows his business needs economically secure consumers, the article is a great antidote to the short-sighted and false attacks that are coming from industry lobbyists and anti-worker lawyers.

When a worker does well, business does well. Business can sell and retain customers who can afford to pay. No one wins when everyone struggles.

Diecedue cuts through the anti-worker spin and misleading arguments, and focuses on the problem the Employee Free Choice Act is aimed at fixing: Workers have less and less power to bargain for a better life, and the economy is suffering as a result. A fair economy that works for everyone, Diecedue says, is a stronger economy for workers and business alike.

Good stuff.

Full post as published by TortDeform.com on January 02, 2009 (boomark / email).