|
 Printer-Friendly Version
Remarks Prepared for Delivery by
U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao
Federation of American Hospitals
Washington, D.C.
Tuesday, March 6, 2007
Thank you for the invitation to be here! The Federation of American Hospitals is one of our nation’s most well-respected and influential health care policy advocacy organizations. And we are grateful for your shared commitment to increase access to workforce training and affordable, quality health care.
This morning, I would like to share some thoughts on the state of our nation’s economy, competitiveness of our workforce and proposals to improve our nation’s healthcare system, and recent legislation that passed the House of Representatives.
Today, America’s economy is healthy and resilient. It is one of the fastest growing among the large industrialized nations, with a 3.1 percent GDP growth rate in 2006. Last week, we saw the rippling effects of the growing integration of the worldwide economy and the strong resiliency of United States markets.
Our country’s unemployment rate remains low at 4.6 percent. That’s more than a full percentage point lower than the average 5.7 percent unemployment rate of the 1990s. You can contrast this with Europe, where two countries, for example — France and Germany — have unemployment rates near 9 percent. And their long term unemployment is three times higher than the United States.
Our economy has created 7.4 million new jobs since August 2003. That’s more jobs than the European Union and Japan combined have created. Furthermore, the latest revisions to the payroll employment survey show that our country actually created one million more jobs over the past two years than had previously been estimated.
America’s workers are among the most productive of any major industrialized economy. And strong productivity growth in recent years is translating into higher wages and a higher standard of living. Real wages for workers increased 2.1 percent over the past 12 months. That’s an extra $1,244 of new purchasing power for the typical family of four with two wage earners.
America’s workforce is also characterized by its flexibility and mobility. That’s important because our country is transitioning to a knowledge-based economy. And over the decade ending 2014, for example, the U.S. will need over three million healthcare providers and technical specialists, including physicians, therapists, and over 1.2 million registered nurses. So, more than ever before, education, training, and retraining are the keys to future earnings.
Our country must find ways to fill the immediate, critical shortages in our U.S. workforce, especially in healthcare. In December 2006, Congress enacted a 3-year extension to the legislation that allows admission of nonimmigrant nurses in health professional shortage areas. And in his State of the Union Address in January, President Bush again emphasized his support for comprehensive immigration reform. The President’s plan would protect border security and create a temporary worker program to address the needs and realities of our growing economy. His proposal would establish a temporary worker program that would allow employers to hire foreign workers in situations when there are no willing US workers available to fill those jobs. Hopefully, Congress will act this year to pass this comprehensive immigration reform.
Expanding access to quality, affordable health care is another high priority for this Administration. In his State of the Union Address, President Bush proposed two significant health care initiatives that will help more Americans afford basic private health insurance.
Under one proposal, families purchasing health insurance will pay no income or payroll taxes on $15,000 of income. Single Americans purchasing health insurance will pay no income or payroll taxes on $7,500 of income. And the President’s plan would level the playing field by giving all Americans the same standard deduction, whether they get health insurance through their job, or buy it on their own.
And for those who remain unable to afford coverage, the President's Affordable Choices Initiative will help eligible states assist their low-income and hard-to-insure citizens in purchasing private health insurance. Under this initiative, existing federal funds will be used to create Affordable Choices grants to assist states in helping provide private health insurance to those most in need without increasing federal health spending.
Also included in the President’s plan is his proposal for Association Health Plans. These AHPs would allow small employers, as well as civic and community groups to band together to provide access to quality affordable health care for their workers. AHPs would enable small businesses to get the same discounts that big companies and unions receive. And AHPs will help lower overall health care costs by promoting greater competition and choice in the health care insurance industry.
By enacting these proposals, our country would take a big step towards closing the health care coverage gap.
Finally, let me mention a bill that was passed by the U.S. House of Representatives last Thursday. Its proponents call it the “Employee Free Choice Act,” or H.R. 800, otherwise known as “card check.”
Although the title sounds empowering, the bill is just the opposite. It effectively takes away a worker’s freedom to vote in a private ballot election.
Under current law, the most frequent form of union organizing is a private ballot election certified by the National Labor Relations Board. This official process has worked well for American workers for 60 years. Its formality ensures election integrity — that each person’s vote counts. And it promotes democratic self-determination by allowing each worker to choose what’s right for him or her without that choice being made public.
However, under the proposed bill, a union would be automatically certified if union organizers are able to gather the signatures, on cards, of 50 percent plus one worker in any given workplace. There would be no private ballot election. Indeed, under this “card check” process, it is possible that nearly half the workers in a workplace might not even be aware that a union organizing campaign is going on!
Interestingly enough, under this bill, decertification of a union can only take place by a private ballot election.
Equally troubling is the mandatory binding arbitration provision in the bill. It would bypass the ordinary collective bargaining process and instead force both workers and employers into contracts that neither may like if the parties don’t reach agreement within a set timeframe.
Combined with the card check method of organizing, this provision would essentially strip workers of control over their employment situation. Without a private ballot, they lose control over whether they belong to a union, and with mandatory binding arbitration, they lose control over the process of reaching a collective bargaining agreement. Finally, the bill would levy extensive penalties on employers, but not unions.
The right of a worker to a private ballot election is an intrinsic right in our democracy that should not be negotiated away by either management or labor, nor legislated away at the behest of special interest groups.
As mentioned, this bill was passed by the House on March 1, 2007. Action on this bill now moves to the U. S. Senate. This Administration rejects any attempt to deprive the rights of workers. And we will defend a worker’s right to vote yes or no in a private ballot and a worker’s right to fair bargaining. Should the Senate pass this ill-conceived legislation, the Administration has announced that the President will veto the bill.
Whether it’s through greater access to health care or protecting the rights of workers, this Administration will continue to promote strategies that emphasize the empowerment of the individual. By working together, we can continue to ensure that our nation’s economy remains strong and the beacon of opportunity in the world.
Thank you!
# # #
| 
