Congressman Steven Horsford Votes for Nevadan Workers’ Rights

February 7, 2020

Washington, D.C. — Today, Congressman Steven Horsford (NV-04) voted to pass the Protecting the Right to Organize(PRO) Act (H.R. 2474), a bold proposal that strengthens workers' power to stand together and negotiate for bigger paychecks, better benefits, and safer working conditions. The PRO Act, which is the most significant upgrade to the U.S. labor law in 80 years, is a direct response to the struggle that many hardworking families are facing to keep pace with the rising costs of education, child care, housing, and other basic essentials.

"The PRO Act is necessary for America's workers because the economy is simply NOT working for millions of Americans who are struggling to get by while corporate profits are soaring. In this current economic climate, the reasons to support unions and the workers they represent are plentiful. When workers can stand together and negotiate with their employers, they earn higher wages and narrow both the racial wealth gap and the gender pay gap." Congressman Horsford said. "Unions across our country are fighting to secure better working conditions and better wages for their members. In Las Vegas, 60,000 workers benefit from their membership in the Culinary Union Local 226 — they have fair wages, job security, and good health benefits. Today, we are one step closer to securing those rights for all American workers by passing this crucial legislation."

Research consistently shows that workers who are represented by unions earn higher pay, have safer workplaces, and are more likely to have employer-sponsored health care and retirement plans. But, after decades of attacks on workers' right to organize funded by wealthy special interests, just ten percent of American workers are union members, the lowest rate on record.

The decline in union membership has coincided with a rise in income inequality. Over the past three decades, as union density declined from its peak of more than 30 percent in the 1970s, the average income for the bottom 90 percent of families stayed the same, while average incomes for the wealthiest one percent nearly doubled.

The PRO Act:

Introduces meaningful, enforceable penalties for companies and executives that violate workers' rights;
Protects and expands workers' power to stand together and negotiate for bigger paychecks, better benefits, and safer working conditions, and closes loopholes that corporations use to exploit workers; and
Strengthens workers' access to fair union elections and requires corporations to respect the results.