http://www.examiner.com/x-2071-DC-Special-Interests-Examiner~y2009m2d14-Now-that-the-stimulus-is-passed-its-time-to-pass-the-Employee-Free-Choice-Act?cid=exrss-DC-Special-Interests-ExaminerPassage of the economic stimulus bill proves that President Obama can make the change the country needs with or without Republican support. The Employee Free Choice Act is the best next step to power up the stimulus. Workers need jobs and our economy needs those jobs to be good jobs. The best way to invest in the community is to make sure that new jobs allow workers to improve their family’s lives. Workers don’t spend money on luxury retreats, private jets or multi-thousand dollar waste receptacles. They spend money on food, clothing and paying their mortgage. A good job with good health care benefits means that workers don’t waste time in the emergency room or worse have to face the terrible choice to wait one more day for care to see if their child will get better on their own
The stimulus will be in the bloodstream next week, but the body needs the freedom to move and regain strength. Millions of Americans are in foreclosure, unemployed, and without adequate health care. The stimulus program was the beginning of the solution not the solution itself. It is fundamental to the American ethic that working hard and playing by the rules should lead to the American Dream, not to the unemployment line.
The Employee Free Choice Act not only allows workers to negotiate with their employers it places real consequences on continuing the destructive business culture that got us into this mess. It fixes a broken system and will fix the economy. For too long employers have paid consultants who told them that anything good for their employees is a net loss for the business. In fact business thrives when the community has money to spend. Businesses thrive when workers gain experience and build trust with customers by staying with the company. Our economy will thrive when businesses choose a new culture of partnership and cooperation with their team; their employees. It’s time to pass the Employee Free Choice Act not as a payback for political support but as a pay forward to ensure that future generations enjoy the American Dream.