Levin, Watson Coleman, 129 Colleagues Introduce Resolution Recognizing Congressional Workers’ Right to Organize
Today, Congresswoman Bonnie Watson Coleman (NJ-12) joined 129 House Democratic colleagues in cosponsoring H.Res 915, Recognizing Congressional Workers’ Right to Organize introduced by Congressman Andy Levin (MI-9).
Following the passage of the Congressional Accountability Act in 1995, the Office of Compliance and Workplace Rights ruled in 1996 that passage of this resolution was the final step to give congressional workers legal protection to organize and bargain collectively.
Watson Coleman issued the following statement:
“Recently, countless congressional staffers have bravely come forward to share their stories, many of which highlight the clear need for greater protections in the congressional workplace. Our hard-working staffers put in long hours helping constituents, crafting legislation and keeping our country running. They, like all workers, deserve dignity and safety in the workplace. I’m proud to support their efforts to unionize.
“The Democratic Party has historically been the party of the worker, and we intend to stick to that principle. My colleagues and I are ready to listen to our staffers and do everything in our power to provide them with the same fundamental protections that every American worker is entitled to.
“Congressional workers have had the right to organize for more than a quarter of a century, but lawmakers have not taken the necessary actions to ensure that they can enjoy that right without fear of retaliation. I’m glad that Congress is finally taking that long overdue step and urge a vote on this resolution as swiftly as possible.”
Recognizing Congressional Workers’ Right to Organize is cosponsored by Reps. Nanette Diaz Barragán, Karen Bass, Joyce Beatty, Don Beyer, Earl Blumenauer, Lisa, Blunt Rochester, Suzanne Bonamici, Jamaal Bowman, Anthony Brown, Shontel Brown, Cori Bush, Cheri Bustos, Tony Cardenas, André Carson, Matt Cartwright, Sean Casten, 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, Danny K. Davis, Madeleine Dean, Peter DeFazio, Diana DeGette, Rosa L. DeLauro, Suzan DelBene, Mark DeSaulnier, Ted Deutch, Debbie Dingell, 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, Sara Jacobs, Pramila Jayapal, Henry C. “Hank” Johnson, Jr., Mondaire Jones, Kai Kahele, Marcy Kaptur, William R. Keating, Ro Khanna, Dan Kildee, Derek Kilmer, Ann Kirkpatrick, Raja Krishnamoorthi, John B. Larson, Brenda L. Lawrence, Barbara Lee, Teresa Leger Fernandez, Andy Levin, Mike Levin, Alan Lowenthal, Stephen F. Lynch, Tom Malinowski, Sean Patrick Maloney, Carolyn B. Maloney, Betty McCollum, A. Donald McEachin, James P. McGovern, Grace Meng, Seth Moulton, Jerrold Nadler, Grace F. Napolitano, Marie Newman, Donald Norcross, Eleanor Holmes Norton, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ilhan Omar, Frank Pallone, Jr., Donald M. Payne, Jr., Dean Phillips, Chellie Pingree, Mark Pocan, Katie Porter, Ayanna Pressley, David E. Price, Mike Quigley, Jamie Raskin, Bobby L. Rush, Linda T. Sánchez, John P. Sarbanes, Mary Gay Scanlon, Jan Schakowsky, Adam Schiff, Bradley S. Schneider, Robert C. "Bobby" Scott, David Scott, Brad Sherman, Albio Sires, Elissa Slotkin, Darren Soto, Jackie Speier, Melanie Stansbury, Haley Stevens, 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, Nydia Velázquez, Peter Welch, Susan Wild, Nikema Williams and John Yarmuth.
To read the full resolution text, click here.