Rep. Jay Inslee (D-1st) and Democratic congressional candidate Darcy Burner reaffirmed their strong support for federal labor law reform to restore the freedom to form unions at a community forum Thursday night in Bellevue.  Both also expressed their commitment to retaining fair estate taxes, pursuing trade policies that protect workers and the environment, and fixing the myriad of problems with the Medicare Part D drug program.

Burner was a surprise guest at the "Conversation With Your Congressman" public forum hosted by the Washington State Alliance for Retired Americans at the North Bellevue Community Center.  U.S. Rep. Dave Reichert (R-8th) declined an invitation to attend the event, which was held near the border of his and Inslee's adjoining districts, but Burner jumped at the chance to address her potential constituents and explain where she stands on the issues.

"It's extremely unfortunate that Dave Reichert decided not to be here today, but I value the opportunity to address the people I hope to represent in the 8th Congressional District," Burner said.

Forum moderator Art Boulton, President of the Washington State Alliance for Retired Americans, said, "Given the important working families issues before Congress, it is frustrating that citizens have such a difficult time figuring out where their member of Congress even stands on those issues. That's why we hosted this 'Conversation' so that we can get past the sound-bite friendly talking points and really give the community a chance to learn about these important issues."

The event was co-sponsored by Washington Citizen Action, the Washington Tax Fairness Coalition, and the Washington State Labor Council, AFL-CIO.

Former King County Councilman Brian Derdowski described his experience sitting on workers' rights boards and hearing stories of how people who decided they wanted to form unions at their workplace were harassed and fired for exercising their legal rights.

"In this country, it shouldn't require sticking your neck out and enduring months of harassment for wanting to form a union," he said.

In fact, it is illegal. Federal law says all Americans have the right to decide whether they want to join unions free from intimidation, harassment and coercion by their employers. But those laws are not being enforced in America, which is why the Employee Free Choice Act has been introduced in Congress. It would require employers to recognize the union when a majority of workers sign cards authorizing representation, as opposed to enduring a months-long "campaign" at work during which their employer and hired union-avoidance consultants often intimidate and harass employees for months prior to the union vote.

Last year, Cingular Wireless agreed to remain neutral on the issue of unionization and to recognize this type of "card-check" election. Nearly 1,000 call-center workers in Bothell signed cards to join the WashTech/CWA union. 

At Thursday's forum, Cingular employee Les French described how positive and fair he found that union-organizing process to be. "The hope I see with the Employee Free Choice Act is that it gives the opportunity for all workers to work with management to solve their issues together," he said.

Rep. Inslee and the other five House Democrats from Washington state have all co-sponsored the EFCA. The bill now has 215 co-sponsors in the House -- including 15 Republicans -- just three short of an outright majority. Both Sens. Maria Cantwell and Patty Murray are among the 43 Senate co-sponsors of the bill. The Washington State Labor Council and other unions have repeatedly asked Rep. Dave Reichert (R-8th) and our state's other two Republican U.S. Representatives to support the EFCA, so far to no avail.

"We're only a couple of votes away in the House," Derdowski said, then turning to Darcy Burner seated beside him, "I wonder where we could get those votes."  Burner confirmed that she is a "staunch supporter" of the EFCA and would be eager to co-sponsor it, if elected.

Nancy Amidei of the Washington Tax Fairness Coalition dispelled some of the myths about the federal estate tax, such as the notion that the estates of the wealthy have already been taxed once, when in fact, the majority of wealth in the estates of the nation's richest people has accumulated through a variety of tax-free investments. But she urged everyone to focus their attention on what would be sacrificed with repeal of the estate tax: investments in education, infrastructure and all the other important things we expect government to provide.

"The bottom line," Rep. Inslee said, "is that a reduction in the estate tax means a reduction in educational opportunities for our kids.  It's the last thing we should be doing at a time when student loans are being cut by the Republicans who control this Congress."

Burner echoed Inslee's statement, saying that we, as a society, "have choices to make."  She said we can either allow the very wealthiest among us to get even more tax breaks at the expense of the investments our government makes in our infrastructure, national defense and education, or she said, "we can make sure that everyone pays their fair share."

Inslee recently voted against repealing or dramatically reducing the estate tax. Reichert has voted twice to permanently repeal this tax on the wealthy.

The Medicare Part D drug program is riddled with problems, according to Maru Villalpando of Washington Citizen Action. Seniors and people with disabilities were forced to enroll in one of about 20 different private insurance plans -- each with varying costs, "donut hole" lapses in coverage and ever-changing lists of covered drugs -- and those who didn't do so before the May 15 deadline will be forced to pay at least a 7% premium penalty for the rest of their lives. 

The end result, she said, is that many seniors are paying considerably more for medications than they did before this confusing $700 billion program was created, and the main reason is that Medicare is expressly forbidden from negotiating for lower drug prices as the Veterans Administration and many private employers and insurers do.

Burner said that if the Democrats take control of the U.S. House of Representatives, she expects that in their very first week of action, they will pass legislation to fix the "donut hole" and the myriad of other problems with the Part D program.

In an ongoing NLRB court case, Virginia Mason attempted to re-label all 600 of its registered nurses as "supervisors," thus not eligible to be part of a union, taking away their right to speak with a united voice through the Washington State Nurses Association (WSNA). In its Kentucky River rulings, the NLRB will soon rule on broadening the definition of "supervisor" to include hundreds of thousands more skilled workers and strip away their workplace rights to bargain collectively for a voice at work.

CALL TO ACTION:  This is a battle for all union members to protect their rights. Please attend -- and recruit other members and staffers from your union organization to attend -- Monday's rally in Seattle. And bring your union banners!

WHO:  Members of nurses unions (WSNA, SEIU 1199NW, United Staff Nurses/UFCW 141), building and construction trades unions, Teamsters, International Longshore & Warehouse Union, United Food & Commercial Workers, Washington State Jobs with Justice, American Federation of Government Employees, and the Washington State Labor Council, AFL-CIO.

WHAT:  Rally to protect the right of Virginia Mason nurses -- and all workers -- to form unions.

WHEN:  MONDAY, JULY 10th from 4 to 5 p.m.

WHERE:  Outside Virginia Mason Medical Center, Terry Ave. and Seneca St., Seattle

For more information, contact:

• Barbara Frye, Washington State Nurses Association: (206) 575-7979

• Carter Wright, SEIU 1199NW: (425) 917-1199

• Marilyn Savage, USNU/UFCW 141: (253) 946-1141

• Terri Mast, Washington State Jobs with Justice: (206) 284-6001

• David Groves, Washington State Labor Council: (206) 281-8901