[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 56 (Wednesday, May 10, 2006)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E767-E768]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




            INTRODUCTION OF THE EXPRESS CARRIER FAIRNESS ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. GEORGE MILLER

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                          Tuesday, May 9, 2006

  Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California. Mr. Speaker, in late 1996, a rider 
was included in the Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization 
that erodes the rights of American workers. Without even holding 
hearings on the matter, a single company was able to insert language in 
a conference report to make it harder for its workers to exercise their 
right to organize. Specifically, Federal Express wanted to prevent its 
truckers in Pennsylvania from organizing.
  This goes beyond any special interest giveaway, to a major erosion of 
collective bargaining rights. Congress passed a specific provision in 
an airways bill to prevent a specific unit of truckers from organizing. 
The right to organize, to freely associate, is a fundamental, 
internationally recognized human right. There is an assault on the 
working class in this country; one that aims to curtail the right to 
collectively bargain whenever possible. This rider was one such blow to 
workers.
  Prior to the passage of that amendment, truckers at Federal Express 
were allowed to organize under the rules of the National Labor 
Relations Act NLRA, and the airline component of the company was 
covered by the Railway Labor Act RLA. The main difference between the 
guidelines under these different laws is that the NLRA allows workers 
to organize in local bargaining units. The RLA, however, would require 
that the bargaining unit be nationwide, making it much more difficult 
for workers to communicate with each other enough to form a union.
  The bill I introduce today modifies the ``express carrier'' language 
in the RLA so that there is consistency in the industry. Specifically, 
this bill provides that only the employees of an express carrier 
involved with the aircraft--the airman, aircraft maintenance 
technicians and airline dispatchers--would have to comply with the RLA. 
It would be consistent to allow those workers who are directly involved 
with the air cargo operation of such a company to be treated like their 
counterparts in the air carrier business. The remaining and likely 
larger portion of the workforce in such a company would then fall under 
the jurisdiction of the NLRA with their peers in the rest of their 
industry.
  We need to have standards that are fair. Some employers are trying to 
do the right thing for workers. They should still be competitive in the 
industry. There are many ways employers can tilt the playing field, but 
in such a competitive marketplace, federal law should not be 
manipulated to provide special favors for employers seeking to deny 
workers' rights.
  Workers must be able to work together to raise their standards of 
living. That means the ability to decide for themselves whether or not 
they want to collectively bargain. It is only fair for us to conclude 
that people doing similar work should be governed under the same 
federal laws.

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