Yahoo Finance 4 Reasons Kamala Harris Could Be Good for Union Workers
Presumed Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris is taking over where President Joe Biden leaves off in support of unions. The AFL-CIO, the country’s largest labor union with 12.5 million members, is the most recent to support Harris in her run for president. Harris has also gained support from the American Federation of Teachers and the Service Employees International Union, according to TheHill.com.
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Here are a few reasons why a Harris presidency could be good for union workers.
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Harris Is Following in the Steps of Biden
President Biden has been called the most pro-union president ever, even walking a picket line with United Auto Workers during a strike. As his vice president, Harris has played a role in policies and will continue Biden’s efforts to support unions. “For years, Vice President Harris has shown a real willingness to listen to our members and working people everywhere about the issues that matter most to them,” United Food and Commercial Workers International president Marc Perrone told TheGuardian.com.
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Harris Led a White House Task Force That Helped Increase Union Membership by 20%
As vice president, she led a White House Task Force on Worker Organizing and Empowering, which boosted federal employee union membership by 20%, according to GovExec.com. The report contained more than 70 recommendations for federal agencies to make it easier for employees to join a union. Following the initiative, 80,000 federal employees joined unions, while union membership in the private sector grew by 273,000 between 2021 and 2022.
This is a stark contrast to Trump’s policies. Under his presidency, the National Labor Relations Board ruled to create more time between when a union files for representation and the election. This gap made it possible for company leaders to convince employees not to unionize. The NLRB, under Trump, also ruled that employers could prohibit workers from using company email for union business.
Harris Sees Unions as a Way To Bolster the Middle Class
Harris recently said on a call with CNBC.com, “Union workers make our middle class and our entire economy more strong.” This followed a report from the U.S. Department of the Treasury showing that unions boost pay by 10% to 15% for their members.
Harris “Walks the Walk” for Unions
Harris participated in a “walk-a-day-in-my-shoes” event with a home care worker and a security officer, both members of the Service Employees International Union, another in a growing number of unions supporting the vice president as the presumed Democratic nominee for President of the United States. “The most important thing for working people right now is uniting behind Vice President Harris, the candidate who can beat Donald Trump and finish the job that we started under the Biden-Harris administration. Working people are clear: Vice President Harris is the leader who has their back,” said SEIU President April Verrett in a press release.
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