WASHINGTON, DC -- The Bush National Labor Relations Board issued a series of rulings today that have the potential to strip over 8 million American workers of their freedom to choose whether or not to join a labor union. Representative George Miller (D-CA), the senior Democrat on the House Education and Workforce Committee, strongly denounced the Bush NLRB’s decision. He issued the following statement:

“Today’s decisions are a radical attack on workers’ freedom and on their ability to provide for their families. They mean that hundreds of thousands of nurses – and potentially millions of other middle-class workers – could be unable to advocate for decent pay and benefits and reasonable work arrangements. The ultimate consequence of these decisions is that nurses and other workers will wind up with lower pay, more meager benefits, and worse working conditions. Patients and overall health care quality will also suffer as a result.

“In the Bush economy, families are working harder than ever just to keep their earnings from falling. Wages have been stagnant and the costs of basic necessities have been going up. Meanwhile, corporate profits are at a 40-year high. Workers deserve their fair share of the benefits of economic growth, and the best way to ensure that they get it is by giving them a stronger voice at work. Yet these disastrous decisions could silence the voices of millions of workers who want to be paid and treated fairly by their employers. Instead of a roadmap to a stronger middle class, the Bush Administration has provided anti-union employers with a roadmap to denying workers’ rights, cutting workers’ pay, and silencing our front-line health care advocates.

“Labor unions are essential to ensuring that there is balance in our society between the right of companies to make profits and the right of workers to earn fair wages and have decent working conditions. Yet for years, President Bush and Republicans in Congress have been undermining workers’ freedom to choose whether they want to be part of a union or not. This latest action by the Bush NLRB is the most severe attempt yet to take that choice away from workers.

“In order for American workers to be able to receive better pay, benefits, and working conditions, they must have the leverage to advocate for those things at work. It is time for a new direction for America that rejects the Bush administration’s misguided anti-worker ideology and ensures that everyone can benefit in today’s economy.”

The Bush NLRB’s decisions may be appealed to a U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals and ultimately to the U.S. Supreme Court, a process which, after 60 years, has not produced sufficient clarity or managed to protect workers. Miller said today that, with millions of workers’ rights hanging in the balance, Congress must take up this matter immediately and ensure that the fundamental rights of nurses and other professional and skilled workers are fully protected.

Miller released a report in July that details the Bush NLRB’s history of undermining workers’ rights. Click here for a copy of that report. Miller is also an author of legislation to remove obstacles that prevent workers from freely choosing whether or not to join a labor union. Click here for more information on that legislation.

The cases decided today by the National Labor Relations Board are Oakwood Healthcare, Inc.; Golden Crest Healthcare Center; and Croft Metals, Inc.