Call for Labor Board to "Close for Renovation"

Media advisory for November 15 
Contact: Caren Benjamin 202-637-5018

Hundreds of Workers, Union Leaders to Rally at Labor Board, Decry
Recent  Decisions
Call for Labor Board to *Close for Renovation*

On Thursday, Nov. 15 at 12:00 p.m. hundreds of workers, union leaders
and  activists will protest at the National Labor Relations Board
Washington, DC  headquarters, saying that the Bush Labor Board has
stripped employees of  their rights on the job and is instead catering
to corporations.  The  protestors will point to a recent, unprecedented
flood of anti-worker  decisions. The protestors will call for the Labor
Board to be closed for  renovation until it is capable of making
balanced and reasonable decisions.

*The function of the Labor Board is protecting workers rights and
ensuring  their freedom to form unions and bargain collectively for
better wages,  benefits and working conditions,* AFL-CIO President
John Sweeney said. *Like  so much else in the Bush Administration,
this Labor Board has become nothing  more than a shill for corporate
special interests and it*s for it to be  closed for renovation.*

The Labor Board issued a sweeping set of decisions in September, many
of  which were anti-worker. Some of the decisions make it harder for
workers to  form a union through majority sign up. Others make it more
difficult for  workers who are illegally fired to recover back pay or
make it easier for  employers to discriminate against union organizers
in the workplace. 

In one case, workers who were illegally discriminated against 17 years
ago  still have not received back pay.  A total of 33 decisions*more
than half  those issued*had been pending at least four years.

The rally is part of a nationwide week of action to raise awareness
about  the decisions and the threat to workers* freedom to form and
join unions.  Similar protest actions are taking place in 20 cities
around the country.

Who:             Hundreds of workers and labor leaders

What:            Rally at the National Labor Relations Board office

When:           Thursday, November 15 at 12 p.m.

Where:          NLRB Headquarters, 14th and L St. NW