Issued October 15, 2019
"Working people won the debate tonight in Ohio. This debate saw numerous candidates raising not only the importance of strengthening the right to join a union but also the need for bold plans to rewrite the rules of our economy. That's because working people have demanded it.
With tens of thousands of working people walking off the job across the country — from teachers to healthcare workers, McDonald's workers, autoworkers and beyond — it is clear that bold change is needed to address the crisis of economic and racial inequality in the United States.
Several candidates mentioned unions tonight as a way to combat that inequality. In particular, I applaud Sen. Cory Booker's call for sectoral bargaining and Sen. Warren's demand for greater negotiating power for workers.
Many of the candidates on the stage tonight have released ambitious plans to ensure more working people have the opportunity to join a union. I'm confident that each of the candidates will continue showing voters how they'll empower all working people — Black, white, and brown — to organize on the job for the power to bargain better jobs and better lives."
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The Service Employees International Union (SEIU) unites 2 million diverse members in the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico. SEIU members working in the healthcare industry, in the public sector and in property services believe in the power of joining together on the job to win higher wages and benefits and to create better communities while fighting for a more just society and an economy that works for all of us, not just corporations and the wealthy.