Protecting the Right to Organize Act of 2019

Floor Speech

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Ms. PELOSI. Madam Chair, I thank the gentleman for yielding, and I thank him for his leadership in bringing this important amendment to the floor, and I rise in support of it. It clarifies that nothing in this act shall be construed to affect the jurisdictional standards of the National Labor Relations Board with respect to small businesses. I thank the gentleman, Mr. Rouda, for his leadership in that regard. I urge passage of the amendment.

Madam Chair, I proudly rise on this historic day as the Democratic House takes bold action to restore fundamental fairness to America's workers by passing the Protecting the Right to Organize Act, the PRO Act.

Madam Chair, I salute our distinguished chairman, Bobby Scott, for his lifetime of leadership to tilt back the playing field to the side of the American worker. I thank the members of the Education and Labor Committee and all who have worked to make this legislation go over the finish line.

Some people always say to us: Your Caucus is so very diverse. What unifies them?

I say it is diverse in every way. Sixty percent of our Caucus are women, people of color, LGBTQ. We have generational differences, geographical, gender, gender identity, ethnicity, opinion--the beautiful diversity of opinion.

But what does unify us is our commitment to America's working families, and that is what brings us to the floor today. It is a commitment to salute working families, to raise paychecks, and to do so by enabling workers to bargain collectively.

I always say that the middle class is the backbone of America's democracy. The middle class has a union label on it.

So many things that have come into the workforce, whether it is the 40-hour workweek, safer working conditions, fair pay for family leave, collective bargaining for secure retirement--the list goes on and on-- the labor unions have been responsible for that.

Yesterday, several Members and I were honored to meet with Jennifer Womack, a worker who had been prevented from joining a union, and I want to share her story with my colleagues.

She told us about the unfair working conditions that she has faced: how she was illegally denied pay after missing work to undergo serious surgery, even after spending her entire recovery period on the phone with the benefits department to help her pay her bills; how one of her managers engaged in offensive and bigoted behavior but was never disciplined, in fact, was given a company award.

When Jennifer and her coworkers tried to form a union to improve working conditions, she was subjected to humiliating retaliation and forced to attend antiunion trainings designed to scare her off.

She told us: ``I believe that the decision of whether to join a union should be up to me and other workers without having to face threats and retaliation.

And Democrats agree.

Sadly, her story is shared every day by millions of Americans who face a grim reality of reprisal, of retaliation, of denial of their rights to join or trying to join a union.

Democrats offered our Better Deal for Workers, pledging to tilt the playing field, with Mr. Chairman so much in the lead, to tilt the playing field back to the side of workers.

Since day one, our majority has worked to build an economy that works for workers' interests, not the special interests: passing the $15 minimum wage, securing paycheck fairness for women.

Madam Chair, I thank the unions for their leadership in our country for equal pay for equal work. No institution has done more in that regard. We are trying to make that the case for all workers that you would have equal pay for equal work.

We are also protecting the pensions of millions and lowering healthcare costs and increasing paychecks, to name a few.

Today, we are building on that progress by passing the cornerstone of our pro-worker agenda, the PRO Act.

With this legislation, Democrats are holding companies that violate workers' rights accountable. We are strengthening workers' sacred collective bargaining rights, and we are protecting workers' access to fair union elections.

The PRO Act secures justice for workers and advances progress for all.

As Richard Trumka, the President of the AFL-CIO, which represents 12.5 million Americans and 55 unions, testified last year: ``A happier, healthier, more upwardly mobile workforce is good for our economy as consumers have additional money to spend. Local tax revenues increase, and education funding is bolstered. Inequality shrinks. It is a virtuous cycle.

``The union movement and all working people are hungry for pro-worker reforms to our existing labor laws. . . . It is time for our laws to catch up. It is time to make the PRO Act the law of the land.''

I quite agree.

Democrats call on Republicans to join us to pass the PRO Act and to rebalance the scales toward workers.

I always say, whether it is an election or a debate or a negotiation: Who has the leverage?

Well, right now there is too much leverage used against America's workers, and that is harmful to America's working families.

We want to again tilt that playing field back into the direction of workers so their leverage is increased, so their opportunities are improved, and then we can move closer to ending the inequality, the disparity in income in our country.

Madam Chair, I urge our colleagues to vote ``aye'' on this important PRO Act.

Madam Chair, I commend the chairman, the distinguished chairman, for his leadership again, Mr. Scott, and members of his committee.

And I again thank Mr. Rouda for his amendment that clarifies that nothing in this act shall be construed to affect the jurisdictional standards of the NLRB with respect to small businesses. I thank the gentleman, Mr. Rouda, for his leadership.

Madam Chair, I urge an ``aye'' vote on both the underlying bill and this amendment.

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