UE Political Action Updates

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Labor Law Reform Bill Introduced by Republican and Democratic Leaders

February 28, 2023

On Tuesday, February 28, U.S. Representatives Bobby Scott (D-VA) and Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) announced the re-introduction of the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act.

The bill would rein in employer lawbreaking when workers are organizing a union and negotiating a first contract, with punitive fines for labor law violations. It would streamline union elections, make it harder for an employer to interfere in the election process, and ban “captive audience meetings,” in which employers force workers to listen to anti-union propaganda on work time.

UE Local 610 Endorses Sara Innamorato for Allegheny County Executive

February 17, 2023
Wilmerding, PA

UE Local 610, which represents workers at Wabtec’s production facilities in Wilmerding and Greensburg, has endorsed Sara Innamorato's campaign for County Executive of Allegheny County.

“Sara has been an ally of working people in this area for years now,” said Local 610 President Antwon Gibson. “She has earned the endorsement of UE Local 610 for County Executive of Allegheny County. We are proud to support Sara's campaign.”

Railroads Must Be Brought Under Public Ownership

January 30, 2023
Pittsburgh
Statement of the UE General Executive Board

Railroads are a crucial part of our nation’s infrastructure. Nearly every sector of our economy depends on goods shipped by the railroads ... [and] the greater fuel efficiency of using rail to move both people and freight means that moving more of our transportation onto the railroads will be necessary to address the existential threat of climate change.

Yet the private owners of our nation’s Class 1 railroads have shown themselves utterly incapable of facing the challenge of the climate crisis, dealing fairly with their own workers, or even meeting the most basic needs of their customers. Therefore, we demand that Congress immediately begin a process of bringing our nation’s railroads under public ownership.

Supreme Court Poised to Cripple Right to Strike

January 23, 2023
Washington, DC

On January 10, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Glacier Northwest v. International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Local Union 174, a case which will potentially cripple the ability of private-sector unions to strike by opening them up to punitive lawsuits. If the Court, which is currently dominated by a six-person anti-worker majority, decides in favor of the employer, it will open the possibility that any employer, faced with a strike, will be able to sue the union (and, potentially, individual strikers) for economic damages.

Union Pressure Wins Small Improvement in Labor Board Funding

January 23, 2023
Washington, DC

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) is the federal agency responsible for running union elections and enforcing labor laws. Since 2014, the funding for the NLRB has been kept at a level dollar amount of $274 million per year (i.e., it has not even been adjusted for inflation). In real terms, this means that there are fewer resources and fewer staff available to run union elections and investigate unfair labor practice claims — the board has been forced to cut its staff by 37 percent since 2017.

Congress Must Respect Rail Workers’ Rights

November 30, 2022
Pittsburgh
Statement of the UE Officers

Statement of the UE officers

The current move by President Biden and Congress to impose a contract on our nation’s 115,000 railroad workers — a contract that the members of rail unions representing the majority of those workers have rejected — is an unconscionable attack on rail workers, the labor movement, and the entire U.S. working class.

Young Voters Defeat Anti-Worker and Anti-Democratic Forces in Midterm Elections

November 16, 2022

As young workers are re-energizing the U.S. labor movement, young voters turned out in record numbers in this year’s midterm elections, turning an expected “red wave” of anti-worker Republican victories into a mere trickle.

Defying both expectations and historical patterns (the party that controls the presidency almost always loses a large number of seats in Congress during midterm elections), Republicans were unable to take full control of Congress. Perhaps more importantly, a slate of secretary of state candidates who had pledged to use their control of electoral machinery to engineer a Republican victory in the 2024 presidential election — regardless of how voters vote — went down to defeat in all but one state, Indiana.

General Executive Board Members Speak Out on Importance of Midterm Elections

October 14, 2022
Pittsburgh

UE members speak out on the importance of the midterm elections: “It’s important for working people to vote because we’re kind of on a precipice.” “We must no longer vote for party but vote for candidates who will advance policies that will benefit the people.” “As a female who has had her right to bodily autonomy arbitrarily and recklessly taken away after so many fought for so many years for that same right, it is vitally important to show up at the polls and vote.”

Defending Workers’ Interests in a Rigged System

September 23, 2022
Statement of the UE General Executive Board

Statement of the UE General Executive Board

The situation working people find ourselves in as we approach the midterm elections — a cost-of-living crisis, broken labor law, and assaults on our rights and liberties — requires decisive action from our government. However, we are prevented from exercising democratic control over our society and economy by a corrupt two-party system that is fueled by corporate cash, and enabled by divisions among working people and increasing cynicism about democracy itself.

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