You can count on me to use my voice, and my vote, to stand with workers.

Representative Susan Wild
Nov 1 · 4 min read

My remarks at the United Steelworkers Rally on Monday, October 28.

Thank you all so much. It’s good to be with you.

I want to thank all of you for inviting me to join you here today and for the work you do on behalf of working families, day in and day out.

I represent a community with one of the richest legacies of organized labor anywhere in the country: The Greater Lehigh Valley, in Pennsylvania — where steelworkers made Bethlehem the steel capital of the world.

I’m here today not just as a Member of Congress, but also as a representative for those generations of steelworkers and their families.

Their voices and their legacy are reflected in the fight for a living wage, safety and respect in the workplace, retirement security, and a dignified life — a fight that I’m proud to carry forward alongside you all.

This fight is taking place in every part of our society. Across our country, there’s a growing understanding that our economy needs to benefit workers. A growing understanding that we can only have a strong middle-class if we have a strong labor movement that is truly able to organize freely. A growing understanding that our economy only works if it works for all of us.

This effort starts with making sure our workers are safe on the job. The current Administration has weakened workplace reporting rules, has less safety inspectors on staff, and has been carrying out far fewer major inspections. These rollbacks combined with the lack of enforcement is dangerous — it’s signaling to employers across our country that they won’t be held accountable if they fail to maintain a safe workplace. I’ve spoken out against these alarming changes. I’ve led my colleagues in registering our opposition to these rules with the Department of Labor. I’ve sponsored legislation that develops new OSHA standards to deal with extreme temperatures in industries like construction, farming, and warehouse work. I’ve worked to build awareness of these issues, and I’m going to keep working to make this a national priority. Because, no matter who you are, how much money you make, or what kind of work you do, you have inherent dignity. You deserve respect. You have the right to a safe workplace and working conditions.

And workplace safety is just one aspect of aspect of the broader struggle that you and your allies across the Labor Movement are waging — the struggle to ensure that workers have a seat at the table and the power to stand up for their rights.

That’s why we need to get the PRO Act through both chambers of Congress and signed into law — so that all workers are free to organize and collectively bargain, free from mandatory captive audience meetings and other intimidation tactics that employers have used to stack the deck against workers for far too long. I’m proud to have helped pass the PRO Act out of the Education & Labor Committee, and I’m working as hard as I can to get to the floor of the House so that we can get it through the House, through the Senate, and signed into law.

And the struggle for the economic dignity is why we need to get the Raise the Wage Act signed into law to guarantee workers a living wage of at least $15 an hour. Millions of people across our country — including tens of thousands of Pennsylvanians — are working as hard as they can right now on minimum wage, and they cannot survive on $7.25 an hour. The House has done its job and passed this legislation, and I say to Senator McConnell: do your job. Give America’s workers a vote!

On every major issue facing our country and our workers — whether it’s adopting trade policies that protect good-paying jobs here at home rather than shipping them overseas; ensuring that all our people can afford prescription drugs and quality medical care; or protecting pensions, Social Security, and Medicare so that workers can retire in dignity after a lifetime of hard work — on all these issues, we need a strong labor movement. And the labor movement needs strong allies to stand with them. Because our history shows us that working people only ever get a fair shake when they have a strong labor movement, and when that labor movement has allies fighting alongside it.

I’m determined to be one of those allies. You can always count on me to use my vote and my voice to stand with workers and with labor. “Unity and strength for workers” as your slogan says.

So, thank you for everything you are doing on behalf of working people. Together, hand in hand — millions of us strong — we’re going to build a future where “justice and equality” aren’t just words proclaimed in our founding documents, but realities felt in every workplace and in the lives of all workers.

Thank you so much, everybody.

Representative Susan Wild

I am working hard on behalf of all those in PA07 who work even harder every day to support their families, their neighbors, and their communities.

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