Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA01) sided with House Republicans Monday, voting for a Rules package that includes language designed to hinder congressional staffers from unionizing.
Following the vote, the Congressional Workers Union wasted no time in issuing a statement concerning the GOP’s adoption of union-busting measures.
“What Kevin McCarthy and his aides fail to realize is that our organizing drive — which aims to elevate workers’ rights of staffers on both sides of the aisle — existed long before he cobbled together enough votes to win the Speakership, and it will continue after,” states the CWU press release.
Union organizers say they have no plans to stop their efforts and believe the attempt to prevent organization has only fortified the determination of staffers to have a seat at the bargaining table saying “our right to a democratic workplace is here to stay.”
The attempt to stifle collective bargaining by staffers prompted outcry from local and international unions.
For years Fitzpatrick has accepted hundreds of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions from a myriad of organized labor unions, and has even been endorsed by unions, such as the PA AFL-CIO. Messages seeking comment were left with the PA AFL-CIO that went unanswered, while the national office declined to comment.
The Congressman also co-sponsored pro-union legislation, the Protecting the Right to Organize Act (HR2474 and HR842), as recently as last year in order to enable congressional staffers the ability to unionize.
The Beacon also reached out to Fitzpatrick’s Washington, D.C., office to inquire about his anti-union vote and was advised that the Congressman had not issued any statement concerning the matter.Metro Washington Labor Council AFL-CIO, AFSCME Local 658, TTD | America’s Transportation Unions, California Legislative Labor Rights, Teamsters and others voiced solidarity with the congressional staffers on Twitter.
