EMPLOYEE FREE CHOICE ACT
Working people are struggling to make ends meet. According to a December 2006 survey by Peter Hart Research, half of Americans report having "just enough to get by," while another 10% report they are "falling behind." What is worse is their expectations for the future: A whopping 42% feel situation for the next generation will be "worse than today." Less than a quarter say the next generation's standard of living will be better.
Public Sees Unions as Agent for Change
More than 2/3 of those polled believe unions can make a difference in the lives of workers today. In fact, 53% of U.S. workers-60 million-say they would join a union right now if they could. Sixty two percent of Americans believe workers would be "worse off" if there were on unions.
Demonstrating a steady increase since the early 1980s in public attitudes toward unions, 65% now say they approve of unions. A majority of people in all age, income and regional groups approve of unions. The highest approval ratings (71%) were among young people 18 to 34 years old and those with incomes of less than $40,000 per year. Forty-three percent of Republicans and sixty-two percent of Independents say they approve of unions.
More than three-quarters of Americans (77%) say it is important to have strong laws that give the employees the freedom to make their own choice about whether to have a union in their workplace without interference from management. But the system for forming unions is broken-employers routinely harass, intimidate, threaten and even fire workers who try to form unions. Unfortunately only a slim majority of the public (53%) is aware that employers generally oppose unionization.
More than two-thirds of the public (69%) supports new legislation called the Employee Free Choice Act. The bill would strengthen penalties for employers that violate workers' freedom to make their own choice about a union. It would allow a neutral party to determine a contract if the company and the employees cannot reach an agreement. It would allow employees to form their union when a majority signs authorization cards. Democrats and Republicans, people in all regions of the country and at all education levels say they support the Employee Free Choice Act.
America strongly disapproves of the tactics employers use to block workers' free choice about unions. Disapproval for firing employees who support a union is almost universal at 94%, closely followed by disapproval of supervisors urging individual employees to vote against the union (82%) and warning that pay or benefits would be reduced if employees vote for union representation (81%).
