With President Obama, Yes We Can Rebuild Economy

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On January 20th, we witnessed Barack Obama become our 44th President, saddled with challenges that exceed anything this country has seen in decades. Yet, the excitement and hope that surrounded his inauguration make us confident that President Obama will return our country to the greatness we expect by creating an economy that works for all of us.

Already, our President has made his intentions clear -- that this economic meltdown can be turned around by putting Americans back to work and by strengthening labor unions.

As a former community organizer, President Obama knows that a strong middle class ensures a robust public education system, helps to lower crime rates, make healthcare more accessible and bolster the overall economy.

And, in his first month in office, the President has already acknowledged the correlation between a strong middle class and a unionized workforce.  Union members make on average 30 percent more than workers without a union. Communities with strong unions have higher standards of living for everybody.

This is why we must work to pass the Employee Free Choice Act, which will return to workers the power to organize into a union and collectively bargain for a better life.

Our current system of labor laws is horribly broken. Sixty million Americans say they would join a union if they could, but decades of anti-worker policies have made that nearly impossible.
Corporations routinely intimidate, coerce and even fire people who try to form unions -- and current labor laws are helpless to stop them.

By working to pass the Employee Free Choice Act, we can put the freedom to join a union back in workers’ hands.

We know that when we work together, we are more productive, and when workers bargain collectively, they are more empowered.  Maybe that’s why Barack Obama never said: “Yes, I can.”  Instead, he showed us the power of saying: “Yes, we can.”

If you would like to join the Labor Council and your Union’s fight for the Employee Free Choice Act, please e-mail the labor council at efca@unionyes.org.