On the recordMarch 19, 2015
I thank the ranking member. It is incredible. We are in this great Hall of democracy. The world looks to this very building, for what it seeks is to give people a voice, what our country was founded on. What we are having a vote on today is to clamp down and shut the mouths of those who are seeking to have a voice. Very recently, there was a poll conducted that said, if given the opportunity, 73 percent of American workers want to have a voice and would vote for a union, but what we are hearing today is shutting down the voice and creating predictability. This is about democracy; this is about what we in America believe in: giving everybody an equal opportunity for a voice. What the NLRB--and I have dealt with them for over 30 years. We have won some; we have lost some. They have been independent. Sometimes, I haven't been happy with their decisions, but I have always felt they have been fair. What we are talking about is bringing them into the 21st century, making a voting date that is agreeable to what real people think. You shouldn't have to wait 6 months, 9 months, go through the appeal process. Let's have a vote because, remember, the employer has had access-- unfettered access--to all these employees, and all we are saying is let's make sure that workers have a voice. If they say ``no,'' no harm, no foul, and go home. This is about creating an equal playing field, which certainly isn't there.…
