A Right to Organize
Some truths are not old - they aren't new - they're timeless. And one of those timeless truths is this: the only way regular people can get a decent deal from the rich and powerful is if they band together and stand together. And that is what unions are all about. That is why my first day in office I will sign up as a co-sponsor of the Employee Free Choice Act to restore a real right to organize and create real penalties for union-busting in this country.
I am proud that for years, I have worked alongside the men and women of organized labor - including my father and youngest brother, union organizers both. If it wasn’t for the strong support of Oregon organized labor, I wouldn’t have been able to go toe to toe with Bill Sizemore for years over his initiatives.
Fair Labor Policies
I will be a strong proponent in the Senate for fair labor policies and active enforcement of our labor laws. We need to expand our family and medical leave laws to make sure workers can take care of themselves or their families. We should protect and expand the Davis Bacon Act to ensure workers on federal projects receive a fair wage for their work.
And we must also ensure that federal appointees to the Department of Labor, the National Labor Relations Board, OSHA and other agencies have the interests of the American worker at heart, reversing the series of corporate shills that have been installed by President Bush in recent years.
In addition, we must increase the minimum wage to give people a real chance to lift themselves out of poverty and make a better life for themselves. And, of course, I would fight back against attempts in Congress to roll back Oregon’s voter-approved minimum wage. I was appalled when Gordon Smith voted to reduce that minimum wage for Oregon waiters and waitresses by applying a new tip-credit rate to food servers. As my mother spent a decade as a waitress as Village Green Resort Motor Hotel and Restaurant, I take that very personally.
A Sensible Trade Policy
I am deeply troubled by the record of broken promises that have surrounded free trade agreements like NAFTA and CAFTA. In the 1990s, we were sold NAFTA on the promise that free trade was the only way to create jobs and ensure a strong American economy. (I say “we” were sold – you and I opposed it from the start.) The reality over the past decade paints a far different picture and it is time to repeal it.
As Oregon’s next senator, I would take a critical view towards new trade agreements —demanding that they include proven safeguards for American workers and ensure that we are competing on a level playing field when it comes to labor and environmental regulations. The United States should itself adopt the United Nations International Labour Organization labor standards, and we should condition new trade agreements on partner nations’ acceptance and enforcement of these standards and state-of-the-art environmental protections.
Stopping the Sub-Prime Foreclosure Crisis
More and more Oregon families with sub-prime mortgages are facing foreclosure on their homes as their monthly payments skyrocket and they see their household budgets squeezed by rising costs of food, gas and health care. Over the next 18 months, 15,000 Oregonians will face a sharp increase in monthly mortgage payments – an increase of $406 to $1,500 on average. We need action to help these families now, not just rules to protect future borrowers. Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton and FDIC chair Sheila Bair have the right idea on sub-prime loans: a rate freeze, turning the 'teaser' rate into the permanent rate – or at least, as Senator Clinton has proposed, a five-year freeze on the rate. Bair – an 'exception proves the rule' Bush political appointee – has said, "For owner-occupied housing where the loan is current, just convert the subprime hybrid A.R.M. into a fixed-rate mortgage. Keep it at the starter rate. Convert it into a fixed rate. Make it permanent. And get on with it." Clinton recently proposed a five-year freeze on rates. I think that both have the right approach and would push for such a freeze in Congress.
Additionally, I think there are a number of moves we could make to assist those currently trapped in ballooning mortgages and consumers at risk. I like Illinois Senator Dick Durbin's plan to allow bankruptcy judges to adjust mortgage provisions in order to avoid foreclosure and allow people to stay in their homes. Bankruptcy judges currently lack that authority. And I think we must continue to work at the federal and state level to curb abusive practices by sub-prime lenders in the future. Eliminating prepayment penalties, requiring lenders to make a good faith effort to find the best deal for which the borrower qualifies, requiring them to determine if the borrower has a reasonable ability to repay the loan at the ultimate interest rate, not just the starter rate – these are all good ideas that should be adopted.
