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- Congressional staffers are launching a unionization drive amid revelations of poor work environments on Capitol Hill.
- "It is time for Democrats to lead by example," the group said in a statement on Friday morning.
- Pelosi said staffers "have the right to organize their workplace" and have her "full support" in doing so.
Congressional staffers on Friday announced an organizing drive to form a union, just one day after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's office said she supports staff's unionization efforts.
"After more than a year of organizing as a volunteer group of congressional staff, we are proud to publicly announce our efforts to unionize the personal offices and committees of Congress, in solidarity with our fellow workers across the United States and the world," the group wrote in a statement released on Friday.
"We call on all congressional staff to join in the effort to unionize, and look forward to meeting management at the table," the group added, citing a recent survey from the Congressional Progressive Staff Association that found 91% of staff wanted more protection to give them a voice at work.
"It is time for Democrats to lead by example," the group said.
—Congressional_Workers_Union (@Congress_Union) February 4, 2022
Democratic Rep. Andy Levin of Michigan, a progressive said on Thursday that he backs staffers' unionization efforts. The House will be taking "legislative action" next week to enable a union drive, he wrote on Twitter.
The House and Senate must each pass a resolution to enable staffers in their respective offices and committees to form a union.
—Rep. Andy Levin (@RepAndyLevin) February 4, 2022
At her weekly press conference on Thursday, Pelosi initially dodged a question about whether she supports unionization.
"Well, we just unionized at the DCCC and I supported that," she said at the time, referring to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, House Democrats' political arm. Pelosi offered no further details then, but her office clarified her position several hours later.
"Like all Americans, our tireless Congressional staff have the right to organize their workplace and join together in a union," Pelosi's spokesperson Drew Hammill said. "If and when staffers choose to exercise that right, they would have Speaker Pelosi's full support."
—Drew Hammill (@Drew_Hammill) February 3, 2022
Pelosi was also briefly asked on Thursday about Dear White Staffers, an Instagram account that has been documenting staffers' experiences with lack of diversity and poor working conditions on Capitol Hill. The California Democrat didn't address that specific question directly.
"If you've got something extraneous, I'm happy to get to it," she said. "But let's talk — we're trying to keep government open, we're trying to be preeminent in the world."
Follow her statement, several House Democrats tweeted in support of unionization efforts. Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said that Capitol Hill "sounds like the perfect place for a union."
—Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) February 4, 2022
The Congressional staffers' statement also went on to say: "While not all offices and committees face the same working conditions, we strongly believe that to better serve our constituents will require meaningful changes to improve retention, equity, diversity, and inclusion on Capitol Hill. That starts with having a voice in the workplace."
source https://www.businessinsider.com/capitol-hill-staffers-launch-unionization-effort-after-pelosi-backs-idea-2022-2