Delegates to lobby Congress on matters vital to Boilermaker families
BOILERMAKER DELEGATES WILL make their voices heard on Capitol Hill during the 40th annual LEAP conference April 20-24, as they press legislators on issues vital to the future of our jobs and our families.
Meeting with congressmen and aides in their House and Senate offices, delegates will focus on climate change, trade, immigration, and shipbuilding. These are issues the Boilermakers’ Government Affairs Department has determined to be the most urgent at this time. GAD will provide detailed briefings to the delegates before they begin their lobbying efforts.
The 2008 legislative issues are summarized below.
Climate change
MOUNTING SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE makes it clear that the United States must act soon to reduce greenhouse gas emissions associated with global climate change. The threat of global warming affects our livelihoods and our health — not only in North America but in societies around the world.
Congress should respond by enacting a comprehensive, economy-wide, cap-and-trade program. Such a program has been used in the United States to control sulfur dioxide emissions (a primary cause of acid rain), and it has been largely successful, achieving a 41 percent reduction since the mid-1990s.
Under cap-and-trade, our government would set a limit or “cap” on how much greenhouse gases industries may release. Companies within these industries would be allotted so many emission credits. Those that perform under the cap could “bank” their credits or sell them to firms exceeding the cap. This approach limits the total amount of emissions, rewards companies who stay under the cap, and provides an incentive to those above the cap to perform better. It allows companies that have trouble meeting the cap to transition to newer technology rather than requiring an abrupt change that could put them out of business, resulting in job loss and economic disruption. The cap could be adjusted periodically to encourage additional reductions.
Legislation to create a cap-and-trade program must provide for energy diversity — wind, solar, nuclear fossil fuel, and other power sources. It must also ensure investment in low-carbon technology and accelerated deployment of advanced coal technologies using carbon capture and sequestration (separating carbon dioxide from coal and storing it rather than releasing it into the atmosphere). Additionally, we must pursue international action and cooperation to reduce emissions. It is a global problem, and every country must participate in the solution.
Finally, we must ensure that any efforts to reduce carbon emissions do not result in unreasonable increases in energy costs, widespread fuel switching to more expensive natural gas, or unmanageable impacts to the economy.
China Policy, Colombia FTA, Enhanced TAA
FOR TOO LONG, the administration has failed to act on China’s unfair trade practices. China manipulates its currency against the dollar to gain an unfair competitive advantage, pushing the U.S. trade deficit ever higher. We support the remedies contained in the Ryan-Hunter Currency Reform for Fair Trade Act (H.R. 2942). We also support additional solutions to the difficulties faced by U.S. workers and manufacturers. Congress must act to level the playing field against China’s artificially-cheap exports to the United States.
Also, Congress must make clear to the administration that it will not approve the recently negotiated trade agreement with Colombia. Colombia is the most dangerous country in the world for trade unionists, according to the International Labor Organization. Last year, nearly 200 Colombians were killed because of trade union activities. The United States must ensure that our trading partners are committed to respecting worker rights, and reject any new job-killing trade agreements.
In addition, Congress must improve the Trade Adjustment Assistance Act (TAA), a law that helps workers who have lost their jobs due to trade agreements. The House of Representatives took a strong stand by passing the Trade and Globalization Assistance Act (TGA). This act expands TAA by providing training and other resources to those impacted by “globalization.” TAA currently limits assistance to a narrow group of workers — those directly affected by free-trade pacts. TGA recognizes that many workers are impacted by the global economy, even if not as a direct result of a trade agreement. TGA also extends assistance to service workers, where TAA is restricted to workers who produce a physical product. Unfortunately, some senators and the administration have stood in the way of the 60 votes necessary to move forward on this important issue.
Immigration
THE H-2B VISA system enables U.S. employers to fill their temporary needs for seasonal, peak load, or intermittent labor shortages, but this system also needs to accommodate short-term labor needs in the building and construction industry. It should authorize joint labor-management organizations and building trades unions to sponsor temporary admission of trained, skilled workers from abroad using an accelerated process.
Changes to the U.S. H-2B visa program would help ensure that the admission of foreign workers does not undermine U.S. labor standards. It would ensure the availability of skilled, well-trained Boilermakers to meet domestic needs. And it would avoid delays in scheduled power plant maintenance that would deny work opportunities to U.S. Boilermakers.
Shipbuilding
THE JONES ACT has encouraged a strong U.S. commercial shipbuilding industry since its passage in 1920. It requires that vessels carrying cargo between U.S. ports be built and maintained in the United States. This requirement supports good shipbuilding jobs. It also ensures that our industrial base maintains the skilled workers necessary to build vessels to defend our nation.
However, some U.S. commercial shipbuilders — with approval from the U.S. Coast Guard — have undermined the Jones Act by pre-fabricating and assembling major components offshore, with just final assembly performed in U.S. shipyards.
Congress must call on the administration to preserve the integrity of the Jones Act and protect this vital industry.
In addition, the administration continues the misguided practice of entering into long-term leases of foreign-built ships. These activities deny employment opportunities to U.S. shipbuilders and undermine our shipbuilding industrial base. The Congressional Appropriations Committee should restrict federal funding for any leases of foreign-built ships to no longer than two years. And it should provide advance funding to procure American ships to replace those currently under lease agreements.
