Final Rallies for Employee Free Choice Act Held as U.S. Senate Vote Looms

Monday and Tuesday, June 18 & 19, local workers and labor and community leaders across Maine and New Hampshire gathered outside the offices of our U.S. Senators to call on them to vote for the Employee Free Choice Act -- legislation that would make it more difficult for employers to thwart workers’ efforts to form unions to bargain for better wages and benefits. Members of the New Hampshire and Maine AFL-CIOs and Central Labor Councils, community activists and workers will gather for rallies in Manchester, New Hampshire and Augusta, Bangor, Lewiston and Portland in Maine.

“The middle class is under attack in this country,” said Edward Gorham, President of the Maine AFL-CIO. “For decades, unions have helped working men and women improve their wages and win access to health insurance and other benefits for themselves and their families. If they really care about the middle class, Senators Snowe and Collins should step up to help Maine working families who are struggling to make ends meet and support the Employee Free Choice Act. And for the working poor in our state, a union job is their best shot at a better life. After all, unions are our nation’s best anti-poverty program.”