President Barack Obama told America’s top labor leaders that he remains committed to passage of the Employee Free Choice Act, a bill that would make it easier for unions to organize.
The President met with the leaders Monday, July 13, at the White House. International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers International President Edwin D. Hill attended the 45-minute meeting that included exchanges about EFCA and health care reform.
"The President assured us he is committed to major changes in health care and supports the rights of American workers to organize," Hill said.
The union leaders—representing 16 million American workers— told Obama they want a health care plan that mandates employer participation and creates universal coverage without taxing benefits. They pledged to help the president pass major health care reforms by the end of the year. Mr. Obama did not set a timeline for passage of EFCA.
A White House statement called the meeting "a productive conversation about shared priorities like creating jobs, health care reform and the Employee Free Choice Act."
The meeting was also attended by: Hilda Solis, U.S. labor secretary; John Sweeney, president of the AFL-CIO; Andrew L. Stern, president of the Service Employees International Union; Dennis Van Roekel, president of the National Education Association; James P. Hoffa, president of the Teamsters union; Elizabeth Bunn, Secretary-Treasurer of the United Auto Workers; Gerald McEntee, president of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees; Larry Cohen, president of the Communication Workers of America; Leo Gerard, president of the United Steelworkers; Joe Hansen, president of the United Food and Commercial Workers; Terence O’ Sullivan, president of the Laborers’ International Union of North America; and U.S. Rep. David Bonior, who heads the National Labor Coordinating Committee