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The first session of the 112th Congress was a frustrating one for workers, particularly in the House of Representatives. House Republicans spent much of the year launching a full-scale attack on the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), the agency charged with protecting and promoting the right of workers to organize.
Instead of focusing on jobs and getting our economy back on track, they passed legislation to strip workers of their rights, repeal health care reform, end Medicare as we know it, and roll back important regulations.
While the Senate defeated most of these extreme measures, that body suffered from gridlock of its own. Senators failed to pass the American Jobs Act which would have put millions of people back to work rebuilding America. They failed even to take a vote on nominees to the NLRB and Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, leading to President Obama’s decision to make recess appointments to these posts.
Both the House and the Senate passed a deal to raise the debt ceiling that was bad for workers. It made drastic cuts to domestic spending, threatening the social safety net that seniors, children and the unemployed rely on. Meanwhile, it didn’t raise revenue by a single penny, failing to ask millionaires and billionaires to make even a modest sacrifice.
The session wasn’t all bad. Extensions of the payroll tax cut for the middle class, unemployment insurance, and Trade Adjustment Assistance were all achieved. But victories for workers were few and far between.
The UFCW Congressional scorecard grades each Representative and Senator on the most important votes for workers. Whether it is jobs, workers’ rights, or health care, each Member of Congress will be judged on their commitment to America’s working families.