FuzzySlippers
11-11-2006, 02:48 AM
By STEVEN GREENHOUSE ([Only registered and activated users can see links])
Published: November 11, 2006
After the Republicans ([Only registered and activated users can see links]) took control of the House in 1994, perhaps no group was on the outs as much as organized labor. But now that the Democrats ([Only registered and activated users can see links]) have swept both houses of Congress, the nation’s labor unions feel as if they are back — and then some.
Eager to be treated as an important force, union leaders have worked overtime since Election Day reminding Democrats about all that organized labor did to help put them over the top, including spending more than $100 million and dispatching more than 100,000 volunteers to help get out the vote.
After years of being sidelined by the Republican majority, the nation’s unions are now pushing Congress to act on a long list of issues: improving mine safety, putting a brake on outsourcing, making it easier to unionize workers and extending health coverage to millions of uninsured Americans.
“There’s a lot of pent-up demand on organized labor’s part,” said Randel Johnson, vice president for labor, immigration ([Only registered and activated users can see links]) and employee benefits of the United States Chamber of Commerce. “Money talks, and they dumped a lot of money into the campaign.”
For now at least, organized labor sounds fully in tune with the presumed House speaker, Nancy Pelosi ([Only registered and activated users can see links]) of California, because they both want to raise the minimum wage, rein in drug prices and help students with high college tuitions.
[Only registered and activated users can see links]
Published: November 11, 2006
After the Republicans ([Only registered and activated users can see links]) took control of the House in 1994, perhaps no group was on the outs as much as organized labor. But now that the Democrats ([Only registered and activated users can see links]) have swept both houses of Congress, the nation’s labor unions feel as if they are back — and then some.
Eager to be treated as an important force, union leaders have worked overtime since Election Day reminding Democrats about all that organized labor did to help put them over the top, including spending more than $100 million and dispatching more than 100,000 volunteers to help get out the vote.
After years of being sidelined by the Republican majority, the nation’s unions are now pushing Congress to act on a long list of issues: improving mine safety, putting a brake on outsourcing, making it easier to unionize workers and extending health coverage to millions of uninsured Americans.
“There’s a lot of pent-up demand on organized labor’s part,” said Randel Johnson, vice president for labor, immigration ([Only registered and activated users can see links]) and employee benefits of the United States Chamber of Commerce. “Money talks, and they dumped a lot of money into the campaign.”
For now at least, organized labor sounds fully in tune with the presumed House speaker, Nancy Pelosi ([Only registered and activated users can see links]) of California, because they both want to raise the minimum wage, rein in drug prices and help students with high college tuitions.
[Only registered and activated users can see links]