Big Labor's Agenda Is Bad for U.S. Workers and the Economy
An emboldened labor movement is pushing an aggressive activist agenda that would impose new and costly regulations on businesses, disrupt the way businesses are run, and stifle the U.S. economy. This agenda may be good for union bosses and the grab for power, but it's bad for U.S. competitiveness, bad for our economy, and bad for American workers.
Our top priority is preventing the passage of the Employee Free Choice Act, also known as card check. This measure would do away with the fundamental democratic protection of private ballots in union organizing elections. Card check would expose workers to union intimidation and put employers at the mercy of federally appointed arbitrators who would dictate their first union contracts if the employer didn't cave in to union demands within a government-imposed time limit.
While the U.S. Chamber strongly supports the right of workers to voluntarily join unions under fair and democratic rules, and we work closely with unions on issues such as infrastructure, energy, and immigration, we are determined to thwart bad policy.
The U.S. Chamber recently launched the Workforce Freedom Initiative, a comprehensive grassroots and education program to stop card check and defeat labor's anti-growth, anti-competitive agenda. We are rallying state and local chambers in key areas; holding fly-ins, meetings, and conferences around the country; and doing paid and earned media to educate lawmakers and the public about what's at stake.
Labor, Immigration, and Employee Benefits Division
The Labor, Immigration & Employee Benefits Division facilitates the use of policy committees composed of Chamber members that formulate and analyze the Chamber's policy in the areas of labor law, immigration, pension and health care. The Division regularly interacts with Congressional staff, numerous Federal agencies and many national coalitions (some of which are chaired by the Chamber) to help define and shape national labor, immigration and employee benefit policy.
