SJ0077 LRB094 19572 AMC 55711 r

1
SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION

 
2     WHEREAS, In the National Labor Relations Act of 1935 (29
3 U.S.C. Sec. 151, et seq.) the United States Congress declared
4 it to be the policy of the United States to encourage the
5 practice of collective bargaining by protecting the exercise by
6 workers of full freedom of association, self-organization, and
7 designation of representatives of their own choosing for the
8 purpose of negotiating the terms and conditions of their
9 employment or other mutual aid or protection; and
 
10     WHEREAS, The freedom to form or join a union is a
11 fundamental human right; and
 
12     WHEREAS, Unions benefit communities by strengthening tax
13 bases, promoting equal treatment, and enhancing civic
14 participation; and
 
15     WHEREAS, Fifty-seven million United States workers have
16 indicated that they would join a union if given the
17 opportunity; and
 
18     WHEREAS, Even though the nation's workers ostensibly have
19 the freedom to choose whether to organize, in reality they are
20 routinely denied that right; and
 
21     WHEREAS, When the right of workers to form a union is
22 violated, wages decline, race and gender pay gaps widen,
23 workplace discrimination increases, and job safety standards
24 lapse; and
 
25     WHEREAS, Each year, 20,000 of America's workers are
26 illegally threatened, coerced, or terminated for attempting to
27 form a union; and
 
28     WHEREAS, Most violations of workers' freedom to join a

 

 

SJ0077 - 2 - LRB094 19572 AMC 55711 r

1 union occur behind closed doors, and each year millions of
2 dollars are spent to frustrate workers' efforts to organize;
3 and
 
4     WHEREAS, A worker's fundamental right to join a union is a
5 public issue that requires public policy solutions, including
6 legislative remedies; and
 
7     WHEREAS, Federal legislation, the Employee Free Choice
8 Act, has been introduced in the United States Congress with
9 bipartisan support in both chambers (S. 842 and H.R. 1696) in
10 order to restore workers' freedom to join unions; therefore, be
11 it
 
12     RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-FOURTH GENERAL
13 ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
14 CONCURRING HEREIN, that that we urge the Congress of the United
15 States of America to enact the Employee Free Choice Act that
16 would protect and preserve the freedom of America's workers to
17 organize and join unions by authorizing the National Labor
18 Relations Board to certify a union as the bargaining
19 representative when a majority of employees voluntarily sign
20 authorization cards (commonly known as "card check"
21 recognition), providing for first contract mediation and
22 arbitration, and establishing meaningful penalties for
23 violations of a worker's right to join a union; and be it
24 further
 
25     RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be
26 delivered to the President pro tempore of the U.S. Senate, the
27 Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, and each member
28 of the Illinois congressional delegation.