Today, Congressman Andy Levin (D-Bloomfield Township), longtime union organizer and member of the House Education and Labor Committee and the House Labor Caucus, announced that the U.S. House of Representatives adopted his resolution to grant congressional staff in the right to organize and bargain collectively, which was included in the rule for the Ukraine supplemental, by a vote of 217-202. The passage of the House resolution is the final step required to grant legal protection to most congressional House employees.The Senate must pass its own resolution in order for Senate employees to have the same protections.
“After 26 years, the House has finally provided its workers the fundamental human right to form a union without fear of retaliation. As someone who has spent decades in the labor movement and devoted their life to protecting and enhancing workers’ rights, this moment stands out as a major highlight,” said Congressman Andy Levin. “Congressional staff are joining a broader movement of workers in our society who are organizing, bargaining collectively and stepping up to make clear that they want more of a voice in their workplaces. I’m so proud that Congressional Democrats upheld our values of believing in the collective voice today. If there is any place in the country that needs to walk the walk and respect the will of workers, it is the U.S. Congress—the bedrock of democracy. We cannot stop fighting until every worker in the country can form a union without interference.”
“I want to thank deeply Speaker Pelosi, Majority Leader Hoyer, Whip Clyburn and Chairperson Logfren for their partnership in this important effort and for their steadfast commitment to workers in the People’s House,” continued Congressman Levin. “Finally, I want to express my sincere gratitude and admiration to the congressional staff who fought to make this moment possible, shared bravely their workplace experiences, good and bad, clearly illustrated their need for the protected right to organize and demonstrated the sheer power of worker solidarity.”
“One of the first votes I cast as a Member of the House – late on my very first day in that Congress – was to pass the Congressional Accountability Act. As someone who grew up in a union family, as a former congressional staffer, and as a longtime advocate of workers’ rights and protections, I was proud to cast that vote. However, Congress failed to follow through on an important part of the law that would provide legislative branch staff with the option to organize, if they choose,” said Chairperson Zoe Lofgren. “Today, I’m proud to cast my vote for Congress to follow through on that promise. I am thankful for the tireless advocacy on behalf of Congressional staff by my colleague Representative Levin, the members of the Congressional Workers Union for their courage, and Speaker Pelosi for her leadership as we act to support those who make our work on behalf of the American people possible.”
The resolution is endorsed by Advocates for Youth, American Economic Liberties Project, American Federation of Government Employees, American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO), American Federation of Teachers, Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance, Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, Autistic People of Color Fund, Autistic Women & Nonbinary Network, Azul, Border Network for Human Rights, Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP), Center for LGBTQ Economic Advancement & Research (CLEAR), Coalition on Human Needs, CommonDefense.us, Defending Rights & Dissent, Free Press Action, Demand Progress, Friends of the Earth U.S., GovTrack.us, Indivisible, International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers, International Union of Painters and Allied Trades, MoveOn, National Center for Transgender Equality, National Employment Law Project, National Immigration Law Center, National Partnership for Women & Families, National Security Counselors, National Women's Law Center, NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social Justice, Our Revolution, Pay Our Interns, People's Parity Project, Progressive Change Campaign Committee, Public Citizen, R2H Action [Right to Health], Rebuilding Independence My Style, Revolving Door Project, RootsAction.org, Service Employees International Union, Sierra Club, Sunrise Movement, The Frontline, The Workers Circle, Transport Workers Union of America, Treatment Action Group, UndocuBlack Network, Unemployed Workers United, United Steelworkers, URGE: Unite for Reproductive & Gender Equity, Win Without War, and Workplace Fairness.
The resolution is cosponsored by Reps Alma Adams, Pete Aguilar, Colin Allred, Jake Auchincloss, Nanette Diaz Barragán, Karen Bass, Joyce Beatty, Don Beyer, Earl Blumenauer, Lisa Blunt Rochester, Suzanne Bonamici, Jamaal Bowman, Anthony Brown, Shontel Brown, Julia Brownley, Cori Bush, Cheri Bustos, Tony Cardenas, André Carson, Matt Cartwright, Sean Casten, Kathy Castor, Joaquin Castro, Sheila Cherfilus McCormick, Judy Chu, David N. Cicilline, Katherine Clark, Yvette D. Clarke, Emanuel Cleaver, II, Steve Cohen, Gerald E. Connolly, Joe Courtney, Charlie Crist, Jason Crow, Danny K. Davis, Madeleine Dean, Peter DeFazio, Diana DeGette, Rosa L. DeLauro, Suzan DelBene, Mark DeSaulnier, Ted Deutch, Debbie Dingell, Mike Doyle, Veronica Escobar, Anna G. Eshoo, Adriano Espaillat, Dwight Evans, Bill Foster, Lois Frankel, Ruben Gallego, John Garamendi, Sylvia R. Garcia, Jesús G. “Chuy” García, Jimmy Gomez, Al Green, Raul Grijalva, Jahana Hayes, Brian Higgins, Steven Horsford, Jared Huffman, Sara Jacobs, Pramila Jayapal, Hakeem Jeffries, Henry C. “Hank” Johnson, Jr., Eddie Bernice Johnson, Mondaire Jones, Kai Kahele, Marcy Kaptur, William R. Keating, Robin Kelly, Ro Khanna, Dan Kildee, Derek Kilmer, Ann Kirkpatrick, Raja Krishnamoorthi, Conor Lamb, Jim Langevin, John B. Larson, Brenda L. Lawrence, Barbara Lee, Susie Lee, Teresa Leger Fernandez, Mike Levin, Ted Lieu, Alan Lowenthal, Stephen F. Lynch, Tom Malinowski, Sean Patrick Maloney, Carolyn B. Maloney, Doris Matsui, Betty McCollum, A. Donald McEachin, James P. McGovern, Jerry McNerney, Gregory W. Meeks, Grace Meng, Kweisi Mfume, Joseph Morelle, Seth Moulton, Frank J. Mrvan, Jerrold Nadler, Grace F. Napolitano, Joe Neguse, Marie Newman, Donald Norcross, Eleanor Holmes Norton, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ilhan Omar, Frank Pallone, Jr., Jimmy Panetta, Donald Payne, Jr., Ed Perlmutter, Scott Peters, Dean Phillips, Chellie Pingree, Mark Pocan, Katie Porter, Ayanna Pressley, David E. Price, Mike Quigley, Jamie Raskin, Raul Ruiz, C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger, Bobby L. Rush, Tim Ryan, Linda T. Sánchez, John P. Sarbanes, Mary Gay Scanlon, Jan Schakowsky, Adam Schiff, Bradley S. Schneider, Robert C. "Bobby" Scott, David Scott, Terri A. Sewell, Brad Sherman, Albio Sires, Elissa Slotkin, Adam Smith, Darren Soto, Jackie Speier, Melanie Stansbury, Haley Stevens, Marilyn Strickland, Thomas R. Suozzi, Eric Swalwell, Mark Takano, Mike Thompson, Dina Titus, Rashida Tlaib, Paul D. Tonko, Ritchie Torres, Norma Torres, Lori Trahan, David Trone, Lauren Underwood, Juan Vargas, Marc Veasey, Nydia Velázquez, Bonnie Watson Coleman, Peter Welch, Susan Wild, Nikema Williams, Frederica S. Wilson and John Yarmuth.'
Source:https://andylevin.house.gov/media/press-releases/house-passes-levin-resolution-allow-congressional-workers-right-unionize
