Labor

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As the Ranking Member on the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, it is my goal to pursue labor policies that encourage the creation of good, stable jobs Americans want to help secure their own futures. This requires a strong economy that can stand up to global competition. One of our nation’s historical strengths has been innovation. Through such activities as my annual Inventors Conference held in Wyoming, I encourage technological breakthroughs so that the best jobs stay in the United States.

But it is the working men and women of our country who are, and always have been, the enduring strength of our economy. If we are to maintain a leadership role in the global economy, our workers will need to develop the skills and training they will need to be a part of tomorrow’s workforce. They will then need to keep those skills current through the use of education and training programs that will keep them in touch with the dramatic advances in their career areas that are sure to come in the years ahead. For several years now, I have promoted improving the nation’s job training system through the reauthorization of the Workforce Investment Act. This program helps American employees get the skills they need to better compete in the global economy and obtain secure futures. It will start an estimated 900,000 people a year on a better career path.

For some, that career path might involve starting a small business. Small businesses are the principal generator of new jobs in the United States. Yet many in Washington, D.C. easily forget the disproportionate impact that burdensome federal rules and bureaucracies have on small businesses. Whenever I study a new proposed federal mandate, I put myself in the shoes of the small business owner I once was and evaluate each mandate in terms of the effect it would have had on my business and my ability to provide for my employees and/or hire new ones. We must recognize the fact that whenever a new unfunded mandate is imposed on employers, the money necessary to pay those increased costs must come from somewhere. No matter how desirable the goal, one cannot simply dismiss the cost as unimportant or inconsequential.

I also aim to protect the rights of employees to work in safe workplaces where they are treated fairly. When a string of mining accidents exposed the need to improve mine safety laws in 2006, I worked with colleagues across the aisle to pass the first comprehensive reform of mine safety rules in a generation - the MINER Act of 2006. When it comes to workplace safety, I have promoted the goal of accident prevention through education, training and compliance assistance to help employers and employees understand and follow the best safety practices.

In the United States, every employee has certain rights such as the right not to be discriminated against due to race, color, religion, national origin, age or disability. Most employees also have the right to form a union or, in the state of Wyoming, not be forced to join a union in order to work at a particular workplace. I strongly support the preservation of the secret ballot in union elections so that employees may vote on whether or not to join a union freely and without undue influence from any quarter. Similarly, I oppose proposals to impose collective bargaining contracts on employers or restrict the ability of an employer to exercise free speech on his own property. Labor and employment laws should maintain a fair balance to sustain viable workplaces.

January 2013

Date	Title
01/31/13	Illegal National Labor Relations Board appointees should resign

July 2012

Date	Title
07/18/12	Federal agency doesn’t have authority to rewrite welfare law

June 2012

Date	Title
06/06/12	Floor Statement of Senator Michael B. Enzi On the Motion to Proceed to S. 3220
06/05/12	Enzi statement on the Profiteering Trial Lawyers Bonanza bill

April 2012

Date	Title
04/24/12	Congress has responsibility to vote against bad rules and regulations

December 2011

Date	Title
12/08/11	Enzi: Congress Should Encourage Job Creation like Keystone XL Pipeline Project

October 2011

Date	Title
10/21/11	Enzi: Temporary federal spending no solution for permanent state jobs
10/20/11	Enzi: Incentives to grow create jobs, not government and regulations
10/12/11	Enzi: Wyoming could see increased jobs, exports with free trade agreements