HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES |
H.C.R. NO. |
195 |
TWENTY-SECOND LEGISLATURE, 2004 |
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STATE OF HAWAII |
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RESOLUTION
supporting the employee free choice act and urging congress to pass this measure.
WHEREAS, in 1935, the United States established, by law, that workers must be free to form unions; and
WHEREAS, the freedom to form or join a union is internationally recognized as a fundamental human right; and
WHEREAS, union membership provides workers better wages and benefits, and protection from discrimination and unsafe workplaces; and
WHEREAS, unions benefit communities by strengthening tax bases, promoting equal treatment, and enhancing civic participation; and
WHEREAS, workers want to organize, but are unable to, since more than forty million United States workers say they would join a union now if they had the opportunity; and
WHEREAS, even though, on paper, America's workers have the freedom to choose for themselves whether to have a union, in reality, workers across the nation are routinely denied that right; and
WHEREAS, when the right of workers to form a union is violated, wages fall, race and gender pay gaps widen, workplace discrimination increases, and job safety standards disappear; and
WHEREAS, many thousands of America's workers are routinely threatened, coerced, or fired each year because they attempt to form a union; and
WHEREAS, most violations of workers' freedom to choose a union occur behind closed doors and each year millions of dollars are spent to frustrate workers' efforts to form unions; and
WHEREAS, a worker's fundamental right to choose a union is a public issue that requires public policy solutions, including legislative remedies; and
WHEREAS, the Employee Free Choice Act (S. 1925 and H.R. 3619) has been introduced in the United States Congress in order to restore workers' freedom to join a union; and
WHEREAS, the Employee Free Choice Act has received broad bipartisan support with over two hundred congressional members as co-sponsors; and
WHEREAS, at its March 17 meeting, the Hawaii State AFL-CIO Executive Board unanimously endorsed the Employee Free Choice Act; now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-second Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2004, the Senate concurring, that the Legislature supports the Employee Free Choice Act (S. 1925 and H.R. 3619), which would:
(1) Authorize the National Labor Relations Board to certify a union as the bargaining representative when a majority of employees voluntarily sign authorizations designating that union to represent them;
(2) Provide for first contract mediation and arbitration; and
(3) Establish meaningful penalties for violations of a worker's freedom to choose a union; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature urges Hawaii's congressional delegation to support the Employee Free Choice Act and to impel the United States Congress to pass this measure to protect America's workers and preserve their freedom to choose for themselves whether or not to form a union; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the President of the United States Senate, the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, and the members of Hawaii's congressional delegation.
OFFERED BY: |
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Report Title:
Employee Free Choice Act