[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 135 (Friday, December 8, 2006)]
[Senate]
[Page S11683]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        DEFINITION CLARIFICATION

  Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I come to the floor to discuss a very 
important issue facing American workers--millions of whom will be 
barred from organizing or exercising their labor rights unless Congress 
intervenes.
  Eight million workers will no longer be able to join a union or fight 
collectively for better pay and working conditions--including those 
already in a union, who will be forced to leave when their current 
collective bargaining agreements expire.
  This includes more than 800,000 nurses--40,000 nurses in my home 
State of Illinois alone.
  This will happen because the Bush administration's National Labor 
Relations Board recently decided which types of workers are considered 
``supervisors.'' By law, if you are considered a ``supervisor,'' then 
you are not allowed to join a union.
  In a series of rulings, the NLRB has decided the fate of America's 
workers, and it did so behind closed doors. These changes--some of the 
biggest decisions in years have stripped millions of American workers 
of their rights under the National Labor Relations Act.
  This flies in the face of what Congress intended more than 60 years 
ago.
  Moreover, at a time when several states are suffering from nursing 
shortages, this will further worsen the nursing crisis. More than 72 
percent of hospitals experience nursing shortages, and 1.2 million 
nursing positions need to be filled within the next decade. By denying 
800,000 nurses the right to collectively bargain, pay will surely 
decrease and nurses' working environment will deteriorate, thereby 
driving even more nurses out of the profession and discouraging people 
from becoming nurses.
  Clearly, this law must be clarified so that American workers receive 
the labor law protections that Congress envisioned.
  Many courts, including the United States Supreme Court, have 
struggled with how to apply the definition of ``supervisor.'' It is 
time for this Congress to step up and make clear that the American 
worker has the right to organize.
  Therefore, early in the next Congress, I hope that every Senator will 
join Senators Dodd, Kennedy and myself in introducing legislation to 
amend the National Labor Relations Act to clarify the definition of 
``supervisor.''
  The legislation we envision will use a commonsense definition of the 
term that is faithful to Congress's intent in 1947, to delineate the 
relationship between supervisors and employees.
  I look forward to working with my colleagues on both sides of the 
aisle in the 110th Congress to pass this much-needed legislation so 
that millions of working Americans will be able to retain their right 
to join a union and collectively bargain.

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