Political Quotes

“Mr. Chairman, one author in general debate said that we must treat all in the same manner. That is exactly why I made this amendment in order. This bill purports to codify an important Supreme Court case dealing with workers' rights; but unfortunately the bill, in fact, takes a step backward and would hammer into law an NLRB interpretation which has created a system that is abusive to union members and would, in effect, nullify the Supreme Court's decision. My committee held six hearings on the Beck decision, and what we heard over and over again from union workers was that they strongly support their union but they believe that the union owes them the respect of asking for their permission to spend money beyond the purposes allowed in Beck. My amendment creates a mechanism where one can truly implement the Supreme Court's decision. In Beck, the court held that workers cannot be required to pay for activities beyond legitimate union functions. But our hearings showed that the Beck rights remain illusory, and that is because of NLRB interpretation. Witnesses described the problems, including not getting notice of their Beck rights, procedural hurdles, notably the requirement that one must first resign from the union before disputing any dues expenditure. Now it is important to understand that in Beck the Supreme Court said that one does not have to pay those dues for anything other than the negotiating process.”