CWA and Allies Ramp Up Pressure for U.S. Senate to Confirm NLRB and Executive Branch Nominees

Contact: Chuck Porcari, CWA Communications, 202-434-1168, cporcari@cwa-union.org

Washington, DC – With the Senate showdown over executive nominations expected to take place in the next couple of weeks, Communications Workers of America (CWA) and allies are increasing pressure this week on the Senate to swiftly confirm a package of five nominees to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), as well as other executive nominations.

Among this week’s efforts:

Panel Discussion at National Press Club: In an event hosted by Common Cause, a panel featuring Nan Aron, president, Alliance for Justice; Larry Cohen, president, Communications Workers of America; Norman J. Ornstein, resident scholar, American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research; Stephen Spaulding, staff counsel, Common Cause, highlighted the Senate’s misuse of the filibuster and the resulting unprecedented backlog of nominations to both critical agencies, including the NLRB, and federal courts.

New Round of CWA Banner Ads: This week, CWA announced a new round of banner ads on the homepages of Politico and the Washington Post highlighting the implications for working Americans should the Senate fail to confirm the 5 nominees. The ads read, “Fired for standing up for yourself at work? Unless the Senate majority confirms a full National Labor Relations Board, you’re on your own.” CWA also placed a sponsored story on Politico featuring Cablevision worker, Clarence Adams, one of 21 workers that was illegally fired and whose story reinforces the need for a functional NLRB.

House Letter to Minority Leader McConnell: In a press conference on Capitol Hill yesterday, Congresswoman Linda Sanchez (CA-38) and House Democratic colleagues including Rep. Joe Courtney (CT-2), Rep. Bill Foster (IL-11), Rep. Rosa DeLauro (CT-3) and Rep. Mark Pocan (WI-2), released a letter co-signed by over 200 House Democrats calling on Minority Leader Mitch McConnell to allow the Senate to take a vote on the full package of NLRB nominees. The letter reads:

“We are writing to express our serious concern over recent press reports detailing your position regarding the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). Specifically, your office state that the Senate will not vote on the full package of Board nominees unless current Board members Ms. Sharon Block and Mr. Richard Griffin are placed. This is nothing more than a blatant cynical attempt to shut down the NLRB’s lawful ability to investigate and remedy unfair labor practices… We urge you to withdraw this partisan demand and allow the Senate to fulfill its constitutional responsibility to consider presidential appointments, and to do so without continued delay.”

Teleconference with Rep. Sanchez and CWA President Larry Cohen: Following the press conference, Congresswoman Sanchez and Communications Workers of America President Larry Cohen held a teleconference to detail the disastrous implications for 80 million working Americans who would lose any recourse under labor law should the NLRB nominations face further Senate obstruction.

For a video copy of the Common Cause event, please visit here

For a copy of the recent CWA online ads, please visit http://giveus5nlrb.org/house-letter-ad/

For a copy of the sponsored story on Politico, please visit here

For a copy of the House Democratic letter, please click here

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