Joe Biden: “a quarter of a century ago, 9 out of 10 American workers could count on a pension plan with a guaranteed payout. They…”

“a quarter of a century ago, 9 out of 10 American workers could count on a pension plan with a guaranteed payout. They had security in knowing they could pay their bills. Today, only about one-third of Americans are in that shape. Union membership means more security. The facts are clear. Union jobs earn 30 percent more than nonunion jobs. We have to stop and reverse the decline of union membership, and that means passing the Employee Free Choice Act, which I have supported from the beginning, and which used to exist. In Delaware right now the Laborers International Union of North America says the majority of the workers at the Walker International Transportation Company near my home in New Castle, DE, want to join them. They want to join because they need the benefits such as decent health care, pay, and working conditions for which unions have fought. Since May, the union has filed four complaints with the NLRB, complaints that the company is interfering with their organizing efforts. Under current law, this process could be drawn out indefinitely. They should be able to resolve this with a clear, simple count of cards, certified by the National Labor Relations Board. The Employee Free Choice Act will make the will of the majority of workers clearer. It will punish employers who break the law, and it will guarantee that new unions will get their first contract, not just another runaround.”