After Obama victory, AFL-CIO outlines broad priorities (11/7)
Union voters played an important role in President-elect Obama’s historic victory, delivering a critical bloc of support in swing states that helped propel Obama and other working family candidates to big wins last night, election-night polling released by the AFL-CIO showed.
“The election is just step one in delivering the change we need,” AFL-CIO President John Sweeney said. “Working men and women are poised to keep the energy pumping to help the Obama administration lead the change we need. There will be no gap or letdown.”
The AFL-CIO’s stated post-election objectives did not single out workplace safety and health. According to a press release from the union, the top priorities are:
A broad-based economic recovery package in the short term that provides aid to cash-strapped local and state governments to maintain vital services, extends unemployment benefits and increases funding for food stamps to provide relief to working families who are hurting during the economic downturn and invests in infrastructure spending to rebuild our crumbling roads, bridges and schools and put people to work;
Restoring workers’ freedom to join unions and bargain with their employers for better wages and benefits by passing the Employee Free Choice Act;
Reforming the health care system to cut costs for families, increase access to quality care and provide coverage to the nearly 50 million Americans without health insurance;
Investing in America’s future and create a new economy of good, green jobs through long-term infrastructure projects; education and skills; and clean, renewable, home-grown energy;
Re-regulating Wall Street to restore the integrity of the banking and financial sectors and protect working people’s hard earned money - - their pensions, savings and homes;
Developing a new model for fair trade that will restore American competitiveness and protect good jobs at home and worker’s rights around the world;
Enacting broad-based tax reform to end tax giveaways for the wealthy and corporations that outsource American jobs.
“The election is just step one in delivering the change we need,” AFL-CIO President John Sweeney said. “Working men and women are poised to keep the energy pumping to help the Obama administration lead the change we need. There will be no gap or letdown.”
The AFL-CIO’s stated post-election objectives did not single out workplace safety and health. According to a press release from the union, the top priorities are:
A broad-based economic recovery package in the short term that provides aid to cash-strapped local and state governments to maintain vital services, extends unemployment benefits and increases funding for food stamps to provide relief to working families who are hurting during the economic downturn and invests in infrastructure spending to rebuild our crumbling roads, bridges and schools and put people to work;
Restoring workers’ freedom to join unions and bargain with their employers for better wages and benefits by passing the Employee Free Choice Act;
Reforming the health care system to cut costs for families, increase access to quality care and provide coverage to the nearly 50 million Americans without health insurance;
Investing in America’s future and create a new economy of good, green jobs through long-term infrastructure projects; education and skills; and clean, renewable, home-grown energy;
Re-regulating Wall Street to restore the integrity of the banking and financial sectors and protect working people’s hard earned money - - their pensions, savings and homes;
Developing a new model for fair trade that will restore American competitiveness and protect good jobs at home and worker’s rights around the world;
Enacting broad-based tax reform to end tax giveaways for the wealthy and corporations that outsource American jobs.
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