The Wisconsin AFL-CIO sponsored a press conference with Citizen Action of Wisconsin on the steps of the state Capitol in Madison on Monday. The event kicked off the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act week of action. Conference speakers highlighted a Joint Senate and Assembly Resolution in the Wisconsin Legislature supporting the PRO Act. The Joint Resolution is currently circulating for co-sponsorship in the Capitol. One hundred percent of the State’s Democratic Legislators are supporting Wisconsin workers’ right to organize a union by signing on as co-sponsors.
Speaking at the news conference were:
- Wisconsin AFL-CIO President Stephanie Bloomingdale
- Robert Kraig, Executive Director of Citizen Action of Wisconsin
- Wisconsin Senator Janis Ringhand
- Wisconsin Representative Chris Sinicki,
- Bill Franks, Labor & Industry Committee Chair, NAACP Dane County Branch #36AB
- Patrick Zastrow, Colectivo worker involved in new union organizing
One of the most impactful pieces of labor legislation in decades, the Protect the Right to Organize (PRO) Act is strongly supported by President Joseph Biden. It was passed by the U.S. House in March, and is now pending before the U.S Senate.
“Wisconsin workers are raising our voices in Madison, across our state and in Washington to call for the Senate to pass the PRO Act,” said Stephanie Bloomingdale, President of the Wisconsin AFL-CIO. “The PRO Act is the cornerstone of a fair and workers-first recovery. Workers are speaking out, calling on Congress to send this vital pro-worker legislation to President Biden’s desk for signature.”
“The PRO Act is more than labor law reform, it’s civil rights legislation to close racial and gender wage gaps, and to ensure dignity and due process for workers, regardless of where we were born, who we are or what type of work we do,” said Robert Kraig, Executive Director of Citizen Action of Wisconsin. “The PRO Act is important for all workers, especially those who have been marginalized.
Patrick Zastrow, who is organizing a union with his coworkers at Colectivo Coffee, described the anti-union playbook workers face when organizing. “We’ve been trying to organize a union in coordination with the IBEW for about a year,” explained Zastrow. “Since then, we’ve been facing very coordinated and serious resistance from the owners of Colectivo. Only through workers having a seat at the table can Colectivo Coffee and other businesses be the forward-thinking and successful companies I know all parties want them to be.”
“The NAACP of Dane County Branch stands firmly in support of the PRO Act,” said Bill Franks, Labor and Industry Committee chair, NAACP Dane County Chapter #36AB. “We know that so called right to work laws are divisive and racist in their origins and intentions. These laws were created during the Jim Crow era and lead to lower wages, fewer benefits and more dangerous workplaces. The PRO Act will repeal right to work laws.”
Senator Janis Ringhand said “It’s long past time to review our labor standards not just in Wisconsin but nationwide to get our citizens into family supporting jobs that provide the security in so many areas, remove insecurity for food, homes, wages, retirement and healthcare. Now is the time to take that action. I am proud to support this resolution and look forward to working with labor unions and their representatives to provide what all Americans used to take for granted, fairness and mutual respect in the workplace.”
Representative Chris Sinicki explained, “I am really proud to be one of the co-authors of this resolution. We all know that for years, Republicans in the legislature have put into place laws that have an adverse effect on working families, on diversity, on equality and on our economy. The PRO Act will do much to reverse their relentless attacks on working people in Wisconsin.”
Senator Bob Wirch, who is a co-author of the Joint Resolution expressing support for the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act, stated in a press release “organized labor, and by extension American’s working families, have been demonized and attacked for decades. As a result, we’ve seen an erosion of union power and explosion of the wealth gap and income inequality. The PRO Act represents an attempt to level out the playing field once again and give the working people of our country more of a voice. It’s long overdue.”
The PRO Act passed the U.S. House with bipartisan support on March 9, 2021. U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin is a co-sponsor and will be joining our virtual rally to pass the PRO Act on Thursday, April 29 at 3:00 p.m. via Zoom. RSVP at wisaflcio.org/mobilize to participate in the rally. Click here for a list of statewide actions to pass the PRO Act Week of Action.
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