Bob Good Leads House Education Committee Hearing On Confronting Union Antisemitism

2 months ago

Rep. Bob Good (R-VA) leads a House Education Committee hearing on antisemitism in organized labor.

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Transcript

00:00:00Committee on Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions will come to order.

00:00:03I note that a quorum is present. Without objection, the Chair is authorized to call a recess at any

00:00:09time. Today's hearing will examine the ways in which unions put politics over people through

00:00:16the lens of rampant union anti-Semitism. Unfortunately, the politicization of unions

00:00:22is not new. The National Institute for Labor Relations Research estimates that unions spent

00:00:29about $25 billion in political donations during the 2022 election cycle,

00:00:36or far more than the roughly $2 billion they report as political activities.

00:00:41In the 2020 presidential campaign, President Biden received $27.5 million in direct donations

00:00:48from labor organizations, while President Trump received less than $360,000.

00:00:54While the working class seems to be moving in favor of the GOP in the upcoming election

00:01:00cycle, it's clear that union bosses sold out to the left long ago. Additionally,

00:01:06the response by union leaders to the October 7 Hamas terrorist attacks on Israel

00:01:11have exposed yet another way that unions are beholden to the radical left instead of to the

00:01:17workers they claim to represent. Rather than focus on their stated purpose of negotiating

00:01:23better workplace conditions for workers, unions choose to spend time and money advancing their

00:01:28divisive and anti-American political agenda. Take, for example, the Association of Legal

00:01:35Aid Attorneys, or ALAA. The ALAA represents more than 2,700 public interest lawyers in the New

00:01:43York metro area, and on December 19, 2023, it passed a highly controversial resolution calling

00:01:50for a ceasefire in Gaza. The resolution's inflammatory rhetoric, such as calling Israel

00:01:57an apartheid state, alienated many members and caused nearly 35 percent of the membership to

00:02:02vote against it. The New York Post has further exposed more details of offensive and harmful

00:02:09anti-Semitism that is rampant throughout LAAA communications. Some of the union members sued

00:02:16the union, but shockingly, the union members who filed the lawsuit were charged with, quote,

00:02:22conduct unbecoming of a union member. Under the UAW Constitution, they were charged under the

00:02:29UAW Constitution, and they're now facing trial with a penalty of expulsion from the union.

00:02:36In other words, a union member shelling out roughly $120 a month to be part of the union

00:02:41will now be put on trial by the same organization intended to protect and represent them,

00:02:47simply for standing up for what they believe. One of the plaintiffs argued,

00:02:51I shouldn't have to financially support an organization that adopts anti-Semitic resolutions,

00:02:57sides with terrorist organizations, and advocates for the destruction of Israel

00:03:02in order to be a public defender in New York. I couldn't agree more. Union members have rights

00:03:08under the Labor Management Reporting and Disclosure Act and the Supreme Court's Beck

00:03:12decision to speak out against their unions and to cease paying union dues for political activities

00:03:18they disagree with. Unfortunately, unions have an incentive to keep their members

00:03:23ignorant of their rights. They often make little effort to inform them of these rights.

00:03:29And as Jewish workers have recently experienced, current federal labor law and Supreme Court

00:03:34precedent fail to adequately adequately protect individual employees' right to refrain from union

00:03:41activity. The ALAA, along with other organizations like the MIT Graduate Student Union, demonstrates

00:03:50how unions neglect their members to pursue left-wing activism at all costs. Today we're

00:03:57providing a platform for those who are not truly represented by the unions they pay dues to.

00:04:02We will discuss how the law protects their political and religious convictions

00:04:06and how further protections could be provided. Perhaps not everyone here and on the panel agrees

00:04:12on the appropriate role of unions in society, but I hope we can all agree that, if anything,

00:04:17they should pursue, they should advocate on behalf of the workplace interests of workers rather than

00:04:23pursuing a radical political agenda that alienates their members. With that, I yield to the ranking

00:04:29member for his opening statement. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I want to start by making clear

00:04:35that I condemn anti-Semitism and all forms of hate, whether it be in the classroom,

00:04:42in the workplace, or anywhere else. As members of Congress and citizens, we have a responsibility to

00:04:49stand up against all forms of hate, regardless of the source of the political party or the political

00:04:55party, and I agree with the chairman that we should do more to combat anti-Semitism. No one

00:05:01should be threatened, harassed, or attacked because of who they are, who they worship, or what they

00:05:06stand for. I look forward to the witnesses' testimonies, but we should avoid the broad-brush

00:05:13stereotypical attacks on workers' ability to organize and collectively bargain that have

00:05:18characterized the subcommittee's six prior anti-labor hearings, and based on the title of

00:05:24today's hearing, I fear we'll do it again. And just for the record, corporate interest in the

00:05:29wealthiest in America and income inequality is at its most intense in the history of this country,

00:05:36eclipsing the Gilded Age, is now at the advantage of corporations in the top 10 percent, 16 to 1.

00:05:44So when we talk about labor contributing to campaigns, they are being buried by corporate

00:05:50interest, particularly after the Supreme Court Citizens United decision.

00:05:55Immigrants, including Jewish immigrants, left their home countries often under duress

00:05:59and sought to build a better life and future for themselves and their families in the United States.

00:06:04Many immigrants opted to organize and join the labor movement because they understood what is

00:06:10still very true today. Unions give workers a voice and have the power to transform their lives

00:06:16through collective action. That means elections, union elections. Throughout history, unions have

00:06:24been pivotal in advancing the conditions and rights of workers, from establishing the five-day work

00:06:29week to championing minimum wage laws, banning child labor, which is now under attack again,

00:06:36and protecting workers from being maimed and killed at work. Their advocacy, the union advocacy,

00:06:42has been instrumental in building and sustaining America's middle class, which is now under attack.

00:06:48At a time of extreme wealth inequality, workers are increasingly organized because,

00:06:55as they seek the collective and democratic power unions provide them in order to secure higher

00:07:00wages, better benefits, and safer workplaces, union workers enjoy approximately 20 percent higher

00:07:07wages and are more likely to have access to essential benefits such as health insurance,

00:07:12paid leave, and defined benefit pension plans. These gains not only benefit individual workers

00:07:18and their families, but they also contribute to a more robust economy where prosperity

00:07:24is more broadly shared. Unions also create workplace democracy. Unions are inherently

00:07:30small d democratic institutions. For example, workers need at least majority support in the

00:07:36workplace to form and join a union. Union workers need majority support to authorize a strike.

00:07:43They need majority support to ratify a contract. Workers are their unions, and unions are

00:07:49accountable to their members by a vote. While the fundamental principle of unions is rooted

00:07:56in majority rule, just like any democracy, our nation's laws also protect the rights of

00:08:01individual workers. We are fortunate to have Dr. Anne-Marie Lefasso as one of our witnesses today.

00:08:08The doctor's testimony notes that workers have multiple levels to choose from related to how

00:08:14they want to affiliate with their unions. Union-represented workers have a right to resign

00:08:20from union membership, the right to object to dues beyond representational activities,

00:08:29known as the Beck right, and the right to request a religious accommodation for non-payment of union

00:08:35dues. Those are all rights. Unions are legally required to inform workers of their Beck right

00:08:41and their equal rights and protection under Title I of the Labor Management Reporting and Disclosure

00:08:46Act. While employers are required to inform workers of their right to religious accommodations

00:08:53beyond a basic flyer posted in the workplace, employers have no obligation to directly inform

00:09:00workers of their rights to organize a union or come together with their co-workers to engage

00:09:05in concerted activity regarding the terms and conditions of employment. As we discuss these

00:09:12issues today, let us not forget that the true threat to workers' freedom and rights is not

00:09:18unions, but employer, bad employer, low-road employers, intimidation and retaliation,

00:09:26as well as deficiencies in our labor laws to hold unscrupulous businesses. As I've said many times,

00:09:32it's not responsible businesses. It's a few businesses that bring the whole culture down

00:09:38to us versus them, more money for us and less for them.

00:09:46Not all businesses, just the ones that don't play by the rules, accountable for violations of the

00:09:50law. These include employers holding mandatory coercive captive audience meetings, inadequate

00:09:56penalties for violating workers' rights, and prolonged delays in justice for workers facing

00:10:02retaliation. We must reaffirm our commitment to strengthening workers' protections and advancing

00:10:09legislation such as the PRO Act, Protecting the Right to Organize Act. This landmark legislation

00:10:15would modernize our labor laws for the first time in decades, empowering workers to organize freely

00:10:21and ensuring that employers are held accountable for their actions. Lastly, we have a responsibility

00:10:27to fund the very agencies that enforce workers' rights. We should make sure we are appropriately

00:10:34funding key agencies like the National Labor Relations Board and the EEOC so they can fulfill

00:10:40their vital mission to protect workers. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and I yield back.

00:10:45Thank you. Pursuant to Committee Rule 8C, all members who wish to insert written statements

00:10:49into the record may do so by submitting them to the committee clerk electronically in Microsoft

00:10:54Word format by 5 o'clock p.m., 14 days after the date of this hearing, which is July 23, 2024.

00:11:02And without objection, the hearing record will remain open for 14 days to allow such statements

00:11:07and other extraneous materials referenced during the hearing to be submitted for the official

00:11:12hearing record. I will now turn to the introduction of our distinguished witnesses.

00:11:17Our first witness is Ms. Ilana Kopmar, who is a staff attorney employed by the Nassau County

00:11:23Legal Aid Society in Hempstead, New York. Welcome. Our next witness is Mr. William Sussman,

00:11:29who is a graduate student at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, or MIT,

00:11:33in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Welcome, Mr. Sussman. Our third witness is Dr. Anne-Marie Lefasso,

00:11:39who is a professor of law at West Virginia University College of Law in Morgantown,

00:11:43West Virginia. Welcome, Dr. Lefasso. And our final witness is Mr. Glenn Tobman,

00:11:48who is a staff attorney with the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation,

00:11:52which is located in Springfield, Virginia. Welcome, Mr. Tobman.

00:11:56We thank the witnesses for being here today and look forward to your testimony.

00:12:01Pursuant to the committee rules, I would ask that you limit your oral presentation to a five-minute

00:12:06summary of your written statement, and I'd like to remind the witnesses to be aware of their

00:12:11responsibility to provide accurate information to this subcommittee. We'll now recognize Ms.

00:12:16Kotmar for five minutes. Thank you. Good morning, Chairman Good and

00:12:20Ranking Member Dasanye. I'm a criminal defense attorney at Nassau County Legal Aid, and I'm

00:12:26also a member of the UAW Local 2325, the Association of Legal Aid Attorneys, the ALAA.

00:12:33I'm also Jewish. In Zionism, the belief in the right of the Jewish people to self-determination

00:12:39in our ancestral homeland is as integral to my religious practice as is keeping kosher

00:12:44and observing the Sabbath. Most American Jews share this belief that Zionism is integral to

00:12:50their Jewish faith. After Hamas's bloody attack against Israel on October 7th, the ALAA and its

00:12:56leadership created an anti-Semitic, hostile work environment for its Jewish members for whom the

00:13:01existence of Israel is integral to their Jewish identity and for their non-Jewish allies. On

00:13:06November 14th, the ALAA just gave three days' notice of a membership vote on a resolution

00:13:13entitled, Resolution Calling for the Ceasefire in Gaza and End to the Israeli Occupation of

00:13:19Palestine. Despite its title, the resolution was not a call for a ceasefire, but for Israel's

00:13:25defeat. The resolution doesn't mention Hamas even once. It dehumanizes the victims of October 7th

00:13:32by not mentioning that Hamas massacred, raped, and mutilated Jews, Israelis, and Americans,

00:13:37and violently abducted men, women, and children. Instead, it's a one-sided, vitriolic attack

00:13:43against the Jewish state using anti-Semitic tropes and language widely understood to be a call for

00:13:49the destruction of Israel. Three of my colleagues and I from my office believe that this anti-Semitic

00:13:54resolution would interfere with our ethical responsibility to zealously represent our

00:13:58Jewish and Israeli clients free from discrimination. It also added to an already hostile anti-Semitic

00:14:04environment in the union, so we sought and were granted in state court a temporary restraining

00:14:09order halting the vote. After the case was removed to federal court, the TRO was dissolved, the

00:14:15resolution passed with just over half of members voting at all, and one-third of those voted no.

00:14:21Immediately after filing the TRO, the union retaliated and filed internal charges to expel us.

00:14:28They accused us of conduct unbecoming to a union member, even though we have a legal right to

00:14:33oppose the union's anti-Semitism. We appealed to the UAW International Executive Board. It denied

00:14:39our appeal without even considering our legal arguments. If we hadn't filed an immediate appeal

00:14:44of that decision to the UAW's Public Review Board, the union was going to start jury selection in our

00:14:51expulsion trial tonight. We have now filed our own charges against the union with the EEOC

00:14:57and brought a lawsuit in federal court for violating our labor rights and unlawful

00:15:01discriminatory retaliation. After the TRO, the union's anti-Semitism against us intensified.

00:15:09In gaggle, an email listserv for members, and in member-wide Zoom meetings, we were called fascists,

00:15:16genociders, fascist colonizers, Zionist ghouls. We were told to go kill ourselves. Members advocated

00:15:24kicking Zionists out of the union and outrightly called for the elimination of Israel. One member

00:15:29stated that the union has a duty to stand up and call for an end to Israel and signed their email

00:15:35with a Nazi reference, goose stepping outside. When Jewish Zionist members introduced a resolution

00:15:42to free the hostages, the immediate response on gaggle was LMAO, laughing my ass off. Another

00:15:49responded that this resolution confirmed that Zionist union members were not comrades, but fascist

00:15:55colonizers. At the joint council meeting, the resolution's presenters were called disgusting

00:16:02and effed up, and there were calls to mute them. Members wanted to kick out a Jewish member from

00:16:07the meeting for expressing typical Zionist lies. The union overwhelmingly voted down the resolution

00:16:14calling to free the hostages. ALAA president Lisa Oda and leadership were at that meeting,

00:16:20and they did nothing to stop the attacks or tamp down the bullying and vitriol. The next day,

00:16:25a paid ALAA staffer emailed the membership characterizing the hostage release resolution

00:16:32as a small Zionist minority attempting to disrupt the ALAA. He also blamed the Zionists for

00:16:39collaborating with this congressional committee and attempting to weaken the union. I'm not here

00:16:45to weaken the union, but to strengthen it. The union is tearing itself apart. Union leadership

00:16:51has a duty to protect its members from bias and discrimination, not foster attacks against its

00:16:57Jewish and non-Jewish Zionist members. This is not how a union should act, and we should not be forced

00:17:04to support the discriminatory actions. Thank you so much for inviting me. It's been an honor and a

00:17:10privilege. Thank you, Mr. Sussman. You're recognized for five minutes.

00:17:20There we go. Chairman Good, Ranking Member Dessanier, and members of the subcommittee.

00:17:24My name is William A. Sussman. I am a doctoral student in computer science at the Massachusetts

00:17:28Institute of Technology, and this past year I served as president of MIT graduate Hillel.

00:17:34Last December, this committee heard MIT's president testify that calling for the genocide of Jews

00:17:39can be anti-Semitic depending on the context. Allow me to share some of that context.

00:17:45According to the Anti-Defamation League, the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions Movement, or BDS,

00:17:49is an international campaign aimed at delegitimizing and pressuring Israel

00:17:54through the diplomatic, financial, professional, academic, and cultural isolation of Israel,

00:17:58Israeli individuals, Israeli institutions, and increasingly Jews who support Israel's right to

00:18:03exist. The MIT Graduate Student Union, known as the GSU, has engaged in BDS since its inception.

00:18:10It's one of the reasons they chose to affiliate with the United Electrical Workers, or UE,

00:18:15which endorses the BDS movement and urges the union at all levels to become engaged in BDS.

00:18:20In 2022, a plurality of MIT graduate students voted to install this union as our exclusive

00:18:25bargaining agent, and in September 2023, MIT capitulated to its demand for a contract with

00:18:31mandatory dues. Then came October 7th. According to the American Jewish Committee,

00:18:37Hamas terrorists waged the deadliest attack on Jews since the Holocaust, slaughtering babies,

00:18:42raping women, burning whole families alive, and taking hundreds of innocents hostage.

00:18:49The blood had not yet dried when my colleagues at MIT declared, victory is ours.

00:18:55The full-time GSU staff organizer told NBC 10 Boston, those who rebel against oppression

00:19:01cannot be blamed for rebelling against that oppression. In November, my union representative

00:19:07joined anti-Israel protesters who were occupying a building, and when threatened with suspensions,

00:19:11the GSU backed the protesters. Meanwhile, the GSU illegally threatened to terminate anyone who

00:19:16refused to pay for their so-called activism. I filed a charge against the union with the

00:19:22National Labor Relations Board, which agreed that the GSU had violated our back rights.

00:19:26However, the NLRB refused to require training of union agents who continue to break the law.

00:19:32In January, when MIT brought disciplinary charges against two graduate student protesters,

00:19:36the GSU blamed external pressure from billionaire donors and right-wing politicians,

00:19:40and organized another protest, this time in front of the Discrimination and Harassment Office.

00:19:45One picket sign read, anti-Zionism does not equal anti-Semitism.

00:19:50In April, the GSU pushed through a ceasefire resolution that does not mention peace,

00:19:54hostages, or Hamas. And in May, the GSU vice president was arrested at yet another protest.

00:20:01She was banned from campus, but remains on paid union leave. As I wrote in the Wall Street Journal,

00:20:08Jewish graduate students are a minority at MIT. We can't remove the GSU or disabuse it

00:20:13of its anti-Semitism. But we also can't support an organization that actively works for the

00:20:17eradication of the Jewish homeland where I have family living now. That is why many of us asked

00:20:23for a religious accommodation that would divert our compulsory dues from the UE to a charity.

00:20:28The union denied my request, telling me in a letter that no principles, teachings,

00:20:32or tenets of Judaism prohibit membership in or the payment of dues or fees to a labor union,

00:20:38that one of UE's founders was Jewish, and that opposition to BDS isn't a position I hold for

00:20:42religious reasons. In other words, UE thinks it understands my faith better than I do.

00:20:48With the help of the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation, I joined four other Jewish

00:20:52graduate students in filing discrimination charges against the union with the Equal Employment

00:20:56Opportunity Commission. In response, the GSU chanted shame against us, calling our lawyers

00:21:01well-financed. They forgot to mention our horns. Facing potential charges of its own,

00:21:07MIT began approving religious accommodations, and the union followed suit. But UE represents

00:21:12graduate students at a dozen other universities, and it should not take five discrimination charges

00:21:17to exercise our freedom of religion and association. This Congress should pass the

00:21:21National Right to Work Act so that unions have to earn their dues and think twice before

00:21:25discriminating against minorities. As a lifelong Democrat, I would like to conclude with a warning

00:21:30for my fellow party members. A major union president who voted for FDR four times would

00:21:36later in life say, I didn't leave the Democratic Party, the Democratic Party left me. That union

00:21:42president was Ronald Reagan. If the Democratic Party leaves the Jews, we will have no choice but

00:21:47to leave the party. Ironically, this incentive structure is precisely what's missing from unions.

00:21:54Thank you for the invitation to testify today, and I look forward to answering your questions.

00:21:58Thank you, sir. Dr. LaFasso, you're recognized for five minutes.

00:22:05Good morning, Chairman Goode, Ranking Member Dessanier, and distinguished members of the

00:22:09subcommittee. I'm Anne-Marie LaFasso, a labor law professor at West Virginia University and a

00:22:14former NLRB attorney. Thank you for inviting me to testify regarding employees' rights to know

00:22:19their labor rights. There's been renewed interest in unions among workers with a record high support

00:22:25of 71 percent. Workers want unions and should know all their rights, including how labor law

00:22:31provides recourse to protect against anti-Semitism and other forms of hate. Let's start with what the

00:22:38law already requires of unions. The law already requires unions to inform members of their Title

00:22:43I and their BEC rights. The law also requires a union to represent fairly and non-discriminatorily

00:22:50all employees in the bargaining unit, including non-members who pay no dues. Religious objectors

00:22:56have at least six avenues of recourse if their union acts contrary to their religious beliefs.

00:23:02First, a religious objector, like any employee, can refuse to join a union and can resign from

00:23:09a union at any time. Second, under Section 19, that expressly allows religious objectors to

00:23:18refuse to pay any dues but may be required to donate to a non-religious, non-labor charity in

00:23:24the same amount they would have paid in dues. Third, a union's refusal to accommodate a religious

00:23:31objector's request to substitute charitable payments for union dues makes a primary

00:23:36discrimination case under Title VII, and the law requires employers to post these rights.

00:23:41Fourth, the objector could file unfair labor practice charges or a lawsuit against the union

00:23:46alleging a violation of the union's duty of fair representation, such as a failure to process

00:23:50grievances of Jewish employees. Fifth, if a union or the employer tries to inflame employees' passions

00:23:57by dividing them using religiously inflammatory words during an organizing campaign, any party

00:24:02can file objections to the union, which may result in a rerun election. Sixth, in the public sector,

00:24:08a religious objector may also have constitutional claims against the union. Now let's look at what

00:24:13the law does not require of unions or employers. No one is required to inform workers of any of

00:24:19their NLRA rights other than BEC rights, that is, the right not to join a union. This subcommittee

00:24:26should put its energy in solving the real problem facing workers, employer interference with their

00:24:31right to free association, and workers' lack of awareness of the broad spectrum of rights they

00:24:37enjoy under labor laws. Few private sector workers understand that labor law protects them even if a

00:24:44union does not represent them. Employees are protected if they discuss how to improve their

00:24:48working conditions during break times and in non-working areas. Employees cannot be fired for

00:24:53expressing their support for labor legislation or for invoking their Weingarten rights. Workers

00:24:57should be informed of all their labor rights, not only Title I rights, BEC rights, and their right

00:25:02to religious accommodation, but all their rights. A simple fix would require employers to post these

00:25:08rights in the workplace alongside other employment rights posters. Even when workers know their

00:25:14rights, the NLRB is underfunded, making it challenging to conduct union elections and combat

00:25:19unfair labor practices, including union ULPs. Congress should fully fund the board and EEOC to

00:25:27ensure enforcement of all workers' rights, including their BEC rights and their religious

00:25:31accommodation rights. To the extent that compliance with the LMRDA's disclosure requirements is

00:25:37problematic, those problems seem to be on the management side. Congress should fully fund

00:25:42Department of Labor's OLMS to ensure compliance. Even when workers know their rights, they are

00:25:48often met with employer resistance during an organizing drive or first contract negotiations.

00:25:54Given the Act's weak remedial scheme, some employers prefer to pay lawyers to defend ULP charges,

00:25:59knowing that even if they lose, the remedy is often a no-cost notice posting. However, the Act

00:26:05is limited to public causes of action, meaning that access to private relief by a court is typically

00:26:10preempted. This is why the passage of the PRO Act is so important. The PRO Act would strengthen the

00:26:15Act's remedies and require the agency to seek injunctive relief to reinstate employees whenever

00:26:20it has reasonable cause to believe that the employee's job termination was unlawful. The PRO

00:26:25Act would create a private cause of action, giving workers access to courts, rather than relying on

00:26:30the board's general counsel to enforce their rights. The PRO Act would also make mandatory

00:26:34captive audience speeches unlawful, thereby diminishing the employer's power to interfere

00:26:38with employee free choice. I welcome this subcommittee's support for workers. I ask that

00:26:43the members of this subcommittee better target the problems facing workers so that workers know

00:26:48all their rights and can enforce those rights against all institutions, including the government,

00:26:53business, and labor unions. Thank you. Thank you. And finally, Mr. Taubman, you are recognized for

00:26:58five minutes. Thank you for the opportunity to appear today. I have been practicing labor and

00:27:06constitutional law for over 42 years at the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation

00:27:13in Springfield, Virginia. My clients are individual employees who wish to stand apart

00:27:19from the workplace labor union they did not choose and do not want. For 42 years,

00:27:26I have helped litigate the Foundation's groundbreaking Supreme Court cases like

00:27:31Communications Workers v. Beck and Janus v. AFSCME. These decisions recognized individual

00:27:38employees' constitutional and statutory rights to partially limit their association with labor

00:27:47unions they wanted no part of but were nevertheless forced to join or fund. Despite these Supreme

00:27:54Court decisions, I must regularly explain to my clients that while they can choose to join any

00:28:03house of worship, any affinity group, or fraternal organization that they want,

00:28:09federal law prevents them from choosing the agent that exclusively represents them in their

00:28:15workplace. And in half the states without right to work protections, they must pay union dues or be

00:28:22fired. But since October 7th, those once routine explanations of basic labor law have become dark,

00:28:30sobering, and often heartbreaking conversations about the reality of union antisemitism

00:28:36and legalized compulsion in the workplace today. Now my phone is ringing off the hook with calls

00:28:43from unionized Jewish and Israeli graduate students at this nation's elite educational

00:28:50universities, MIT, Columbia, University of Chicago, to name a few, asking me how they

00:28:57can disassociate from the union that is partnering with and often leading groups that organize

00:29:04protests to shut down the campus, destroy property, chant genocidal antisemitic slogans,

00:29:11and menace them on campus. Many of these employees are forced to pay dues that go directly to

00:29:18subsidize the union's celebration and support of Hamas's massacres. In case any of you need

00:29:24reminding, Hamas is a mediaeval death cult on the U.S. government's terror watch lists, not unlike

00:29:32ISIS and al-Qaeda. Wearing masks at the workplace while chanting, death to Zionists from the river

00:29:39to the sea, is not benign or legitimate union bargaining activity. My phone is also ringing off

00:29:47the hook from medical residents and interns at some of the nation's finest teaching hospitals,

00:29:53asking the same question as their union is busy poisoning their workplace with hateful

00:29:59and exclusionary anti-Jewish and anti-Israel propaganda. My phone is ringing off the hook from

00:30:05teachers and legal aid lawyers, all of whom wonder how the union they used to support and even

00:30:11champion had suddenly turned away from advocacy for better benefits and toward radical advocacy

00:30:18against Israel's just and moral defensive war, a war that is occurring thousands of miles away

00:30:24from their workplace. Federal labor law has long allowed employees to be trapped by exclusive

00:30:31bargaining agents they never voted for and do not want, but today Jewish employees find themselves

00:30:37forced under the thumb of exclusive bargaining agents who are loud and ardent supporters of the

00:30:43Hamas death cult. At the National Right to Work, we are redoubling our efforts to help such employees

00:30:50forcibly saddled with anti-Semitic unions. We have filed BEC charges because unions falsely

00:30:56tell employees that they must join and must pay dues, even when the money is spent to support

00:31:03radical campus protesters, and we have filed charges of religious and ethnic discrimination

00:31:08with the EEOC because unions refuse employees' requests for religious accommodations.

00:31:15But despite our best efforts, Title VII and BEC are not nearly strong enough protections.

00:31:21As long as unions can force workers to pay anything to get or keep a job, employees will

00:31:28be denied their full freedom of association, speech, and conscience. The Janus decision was a

00:31:34small step for employee freedom in the public sector. Now is the time for this Congress to pass

00:31:41the National Right to Work Act in the private sector to end the problem of coercive forced

00:31:47unionism and the particular problem of compelling Jewish and other religious employees to fund

00:31:54unions whose views and activities are hateful, threatening, and deeply divisive. What could be

00:32:01more American than that? Thank you, and I look forward to answering your questions.

00:32:06Thank you, sir. Under Committee Rule 9, we'll now question witnesses under the five-minute rule.

00:32:10I will wait to ask my questions and therefore recognize Mr. Wilson from South Carolina for

00:32:15five minutes. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman, and thank you, witnesses, for being here today.

00:32:20And particularly, I'm very grateful, Mr. Tubman, the National Right to Work Committee

00:32:25is appreciated, is truly the champion for workers' rights, promoting freedom since 1955.

00:32:34That's just extraordinary to have such a strong life and so successful. And it's achieved a

00:32:39majority of the American states to enact right-to-work laws for protecting workers' freedom

00:32:44of choice. In South Carolina, it was instrumental in working with creating 10,000 jobs at the Boeing

00:32:54Aircraft Company with its suppliers to build 787 jetliners several years ago in Charleston,

00:33:01Orangeburg, Aiken, and Lexington. I was grateful to be working with Governor Nikki Haley, U.S.

00:33:06Senators Tim Scott and Lindsey Graham, and Attorney General Alan Wilson with the Right

00:33:11to Work Committee, and you prevailed over the corrupt National Labor Relations Act. And now

00:33:1910,000 workers, thousands of families are benefiting from what the Right to Work Committee

00:33:26has achieved. The Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation is working with Jewish and Israeli

00:33:32employees to protect their statutory and civil rights in the face of anti-Semitism. Can you

00:33:39discuss these workers' reactions to their unions supporting anti-Semitic and anti-Israel

00:33:45causes despite having a legal duty to protect the interests of all members they represent?

00:33:51Thank you very much, Congressman Wilson, for that question. As I said in my statement,

00:33:56it is heartbreaking for me as a Jewish American and as a Zionist to have my phone ringing off

00:34:05the hook every single day since October 7th by students, workers, teachers, legal aid lawyers,

00:34:15doctors saying, how do I get out of this? I am surrounded by vicious people attacking me as a

00:34:23Jew, attacking me as a Zionist. I have friends in Israel. I have family in Israel. I have friends

00:34:30who served in the IDF, the most moral army in the world, perhaps second only to the United States

00:34:39Army. And they are attacked in their workplace. So that is the reaction that I am seeing.

00:34:46And unfortunately, I cannot say to all of these people, exercise your constitutional rights to

00:34:53get out because under the National Labor Relations Act, they cannot get out. They are forced to be

00:35:00part of a bargaining unit and forced to pay dues to a union or be fired. And finally, although

00:35:08we've heard that unions have an obligation to tell people about their rights, in fact,

00:35:16few unions do. And if you look at the exhibits to my statement, you'll see that in

00:35:27Exhibit 5, for example, this is a pamphlet that the union at MIT put out to students.

00:35:36They say, you are required, required to sign up for either dues or agency fees as a condition of

00:35:44employment. The cost of dues and agency fees is exactly the same. That's a lie. The whole point

00:35:53of Beck is that the cost of reduced dues is different. You don't have to fund these obnoxious,

00:36:00outrageous political actions. But the unions lie and tell people they do.

00:36:06Well, thank you for the right to work committee for telling the truth. And Mr. Sussman, thank you

00:36:10for your courage. Indeed, the Graduate Student Union had an email in December 2023, which condemned

00:36:19MIT administrative for shutting down what they call peaceful protests. What were these peaceful protests?

00:36:28Thank you, Mr. Wilson. The students would occupy buildings. They would occupy

00:36:36communal spaces on campus that are supposed to be shared. And over time, they would escalate.

00:36:43And I included in my testimony the arrest records of several students, many of whom are graduate

00:36:48students in the union, one of whom is the vice president who is paid by the union. And many of

00:36:54those arrests were violent. I believe one person is charged with assaulting a 60-year-old disabled

00:37:03person. And again, thank you for your courage. And I regret, Ms. Cotmer, I don't have time,

00:37:08but thank you for your courage. And indeed, to have the Association of Legal Aid Attorneys to

00:37:17ignore or disregard mass murder and rape. Thank you for the courage to stand up against that. And

00:37:23the Hamas puppets of the regime in Tehran need to be addressed. Thank you very much. I yield back.

00:37:29Thank you. We'll now recognize Mr. Norcross from New Jersey for five minutes.

00:37:34Thank you. I want to start out by saying we live in the greatest country in the world.

00:37:40We live in a democracy, which we have elections, whether they're for members of Congress or for

00:37:47their representatives as their union voices. But I do want to take a moment of personal privilege to

00:37:55privilege to thank the chairman. He and I agree on little, if anything, but I do want to thank him

00:38:04for his public service and wish him well in any future endeavors that are coming out. We really,

00:38:10we need more public servants, but we appreciate what you've done and wish you well.

00:38:17Start out by saying that we're in due process. I heard stories,

00:38:21uh, what is going on in this country with antisemitism is, is horrific in any form. We

00:38:28heard many of our hearings, what is going on in college campuses. And I couldn't agree more,

00:38:33but we live in a country that's democracy. And unfortunately, many of those views are something

00:38:40that I personally disagree with as many of us, but in this country, um, and to quote our friend

00:38:48from the, um, the Institute, uh, Mr. Tamon, we did not choose and we do not want many of our

00:38:57elected officials. Some might even be in this room and we are forced to fund them, whether it's a

00:39:04union or our government. But the idea of a suggestion that because of a few bad actors,

00:39:12which we make no excuses for, are being antisemitic and smearing the entire

00:39:19representatives of workers, I think is no different calling unions antisemites.

00:39:25You can call Republicans racist, you call Democrats socialists, but it doesn't make it true.

00:39:33But if we look back in our history, we certainly did have racists that served in this house.

00:39:38But the idea that somehow this is breaking out, I'm sorry, did you say something? Do I,

00:39:46you're looking to yield time for me, chairman? You finished with your time? No, you were talking,

00:39:53I thought you were wanting me to yield some time. I thought maybe you were talking about the

00:39:56Southern Democrats and the KKK. I claimed back my time, thank you, you're done in more than one way.

00:40:02So the idea of what we're doing each and every day is how democracies work. So my question goes

00:40:08back to whether they have votes on authorizing strikes, ratifying contracts, union leadership,

00:40:14the votes that go on each and every day. This is not a top down, this is a bottom up. This is

00:40:20something that we believe in, in our nation and certainly in the unions. Dr. LoFalcio, can you

00:40:25talk to us a little bit more detail of what you started to talk about, where those rights of a

00:40:30union member, when it comes to dues, when it comes to the votes on where that union comes together.

00:40:36But at the end of the day, they have a vote, whether they agree with it or they don't,

00:40:42just like we do in this country when we have votes. Could you expand on some of those issues,

00:40:48particularly right to work states versus non right to work states?

00:40:52Okay, so first of all, no worker can be compelled to join a union in any state. In right to work

00:41:02states, they also cannot be compelled to pay their dues. I think that we agree on that.

00:41:12In non right to work states or fair share states, the only thing that union represented employees

00:41:23have to pay are their agency fees, which is, as Mr. Taubman pointed out, they are reduced fees

00:41:30because the Supreme Court has stated very clearly that unions cannot force anyone to pay for their

00:41:37political activities or non representative activities. So there is a big difference in

00:41:44right to work states and not right to work states. Also, with respect to a national right to work law,

00:41:53there already is a solution for that too, which is to lobby. The states can do that. Every state

00:42:00can do that if they want, and it would have the same effect. West Virginia was one of the most

00:42:07democratic states until recently. It was not right to work, and now it is recently right to work.

00:42:16Sorry. No, we understand. So the idea that they do have a choice, they are represented

00:42:25by agency fees. We understand all that. But the idea of having a hearing, one of only maybe a

00:42:32dozen a year, making this your highest priority, I have yet to have, and I live in a very Jewish

00:42:39area, one person come up to me and talk to me about unions being anti-Semitic. But this goes

00:42:47to the case of what we are dealing here. Thank you for giving me those additional 10 seconds,

00:42:52Mr. Chairman. I really appreciate it. You have a good day. I thank the chair for holding the

00:43:00hearing today. Again, I would state it is not anti-union. We are anti-union abuse of their power

00:43:09in violation even of the law. That is what our concern is with today and has been.

00:43:15About a month ago, this subcommittee held a hearing where I highlighted the Wall Street

00:43:19Courageous Wall Street Journal opinion piece written by Mr. Sussman.

00:43:25So I am pleased to have Mr. Sussman here today to again be courageous and stand and hopefully

00:43:32produce other young people that are willing to stand, not for Republican, not for Democrat ideals,

00:43:38but for American ideals and decency that ought to go on with this country.

00:43:45I thank the committee for its work in highlighting this important issue.

00:43:49Mr. Sussman, your written testimony notes that the Graduate Student Union threatened to terminate

00:43:57anyone who refused to pay for their so-called activism. In all reality, that would virtually

00:44:04expel you from MIT, not for academic problems, not for disciplinary problems, but the fact that

00:44:12you weren't willing to be represented by an entity that spoke against you and your beliefs.

00:44:20You filed a charge against the GSU with the National Labor Relations Board regarding the

00:44:27union violating your BEC rights, which allow workers to opt out of paying the portion

00:44:32of union dues that pays for political activity. You're following the law.

00:44:38My question is, while the NLRB agreed that your rights had been violated,

00:44:43do you believe it adequately addressed the illegal union activity?

00:44:50I do not. They required the union to send out a PDF stating our rights, and that was basically

00:44:57the last we heard of it. They continued doing the same exact tactics that I charged them with

00:45:03last November, but the NLRB closed the case anyway, and they refused to require training

00:45:08of the union agents so that they wouldn't make the same mistake.

00:45:12And still haven't. In your written testimony, Mr. Sussman, you detail numerous examples of

00:45:20the GSU and its paid staff engaging in extreme anti-Israel and anti-American,

00:45:27we must not forget that, anti-American activity. For example, two days after October 7th attack

00:45:34on Israel, a paid GSU organizer told reporters, and I quote,

00:45:39those who rebel against oppression cannot be blamed for rebelling against that repression.

00:45:47Despite the union that represents you engaging in behavior that is inconsistent with your beliefs,

00:45:54you have no choice but to associate with it or to leave MIT.

00:45:59Question. Do you think current federal labor law needs to be reformed to allow workers who have

00:46:04moral objections to a union's political stances to dissociate completely from the union that

00:46:11represents them? Absolutely, yes. I've tried to use the law as it exists, and at every turn,

00:46:18the law has failed me. Yeah. In some ways, it's still absurd to think. We're talking about a union

00:46:26of students. Very much different than what steel workers union I was a member of at one time

00:46:37and others had in mind. Mr. Sussman, an attachment to your written testimony shows

00:46:42a December 2023 email from the Graduate Student Union at MIT. The email condemned MIT administrators

00:46:51for shutting down what it calls a peaceful anti-Israel protest and highlighted the importance

00:46:58of First Amendment rights. He responded to my colleague, Mr. Wilson, about some of those

00:47:05activities. Do you believe that the GSU has respected the First Amendment rights of the

00:47:11Jewish graduate students they represent? No, they have not respected our rights,

00:47:16specifically speech, religion, and association. In fact, they've stepped on them. They've pushed

00:47:22them down, pushed them back, tried to discourage any dissent from that and still expected you to

00:47:29pay up while people that should be representing you fight against you, your belief, your

00:47:39nationality, religion, and your American ideals as well. Mr. Sussman, I would encourage you

00:47:49to continue standing firm. I believe others are watching. I believe there's others that will gain

00:47:56strength and courage themselves to follow you. It won't be easy as Mr. Taubman has identified

00:48:04in his efforts for 40 years, but it must be done for America as well as freedom and First

00:48:11Amendment liberties, and I yield back. Thank you. We'll now recognize Ms. Jayapal from Washington

00:48:16for five minutes. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I have been appalled at the rising level of hate crimes

00:48:22against the Jewish community that followed Hamas's terrorist attack on Israel on October 7th,

00:48:29and I believe it is absolutely critical that we speak out against anti-Semitism, that we recognize

00:48:36the severity, and we condemn and confront it authentically. President Biden's national

00:48:41strategy to counter anti-Semitism importantly recognizes that, quote, protecting the Jewish

00:48:46community from anti-Semitism is essential to our broader fight against all forms of hate,

00:48:52bigotry, and bias and to our broader vision of a thriving, inclusive, and diverse democracy.

00:48:58I am also very proud to come from Washington State, which is the third most unionized state

00:49:04in the country, and because of that, we have the highest minimum wage of any state in the country.

00:49:10We have an incredible paid leave policy in our state. We have the third best environment for

00:49:15small businesses of any state in the country. Unions have been an absolute incredible partner

00:49:24to achieving justice and equality for all communities. Unions have long recognized the

00:49:30interconnectedness of all our issues and that conditions on the job are impacted by conditions

00:49:36in the world. From the civil rights movement to marriage equality and protections for undocumented

00:49:41workers, unions have been on the forefront of social and socioeconomic progress. UAW Local 2325,

00:49:49which is under scrutiny by my Republican colleagues, has a history of activism opposing

00:49:55the Vietnam War, apartheid in South Africa, the Iraq War, and instances of police brutality,

00:50:01and I'm disappointed that my Republican colleagues are convening this hearing to

00:50:05question a union exercising its First Amendment rights, especially at a time when there are real

00:50:11issues of anti-Semitism that we all need to address, and unionized workers are standing up

00:50:17in record numbers to secure contracts that guarantee that they receive their fair share

00:50:22of corporate profits through dramatically raised wages and increased benefits. So it seems to me

00:50:27that this hearing is really about criticizing unions, which has always been a Republican

00:50:32position to try to undermine unions, instead of the real issues that we should be talking about.

00:50:38We've heard a lot of attacks today directed at UAW Local 2325 for adopting a ceasefire resolution.

00:50:44Dr. LoFasso, can you share the process behind how this resolution was adopted?

00:50:51I can share the process how it is likely to be adopted, because I do not actually have

00:50:58any firsthand knowledge of the UAW Local. What normally is done is that unions have bylaws

00:51:07and constitution that they're ratified by majority vote, so it's a democratic process,

00:51:15and then those are the rules by which they have to live by. After that, a resolution like this

00:51:26would have to go by their rules, and if they did, they would be democratic. Now, sometimes democracies

00:51:34fail us, and so there are dissenters. We have two dissenters here. They're important. Their

00:51:42voices are important because the law in this country has recognized that we don't need to

00:51:49protect popular speech. We do, but we don't need to because it's popular. We need to protect

00:51:58unpopular speech, so it's very important what they've done, and I think they prove my point,

00:52:06which is they had recourse, and to the extent they didn't feel that they had recourse,

00:52:12which I can appreciate, like in Mr. Sussman's case, I think part of that is the underfunding

00:52:18of the NLRB. I agree with you there. I have a couple more questions, but I want to point out

00:52:25some important things you said. It's a democratic process, right? Constitution, bylaws, democratic

00:52:30vote. It was adopted through a vote, and as has always been the case, I think we have to understand

00:52:38that labor unions are an extension of democracy in the workplace, and that is the way that they're

00:52:43structured. Can you discuss just briefly, because I don't have much time, how workers are impacted,

00:52:48how it impacts their ability to organize when Congress issues subpoenas over votes that the

00:52:54union as a democratic institution has taken as the Republican majority is doing? Well, anytime

00:53:00Congress issues a subpoena, it's going to have an effect of repressing that institution because

00:53:07Congress is a scary body, right? It's the government. It's compelling you to come to it,

00:53:14so that would be something that would repress that democratic institution

00:53:20and something that is odd for an elected body to do. Extremely odd and extremely undemocratic.

00:53:27Thank you so much. I yield back, Mr. Chairman. Thank you. We'll now recognize Mr. Allen from

00:53:31Georgia for five minutes. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and I want to thank the witnesses for your

00:53:38courage and your honest testimony this morning. You know, the battle

00:53:45rages on in the country about, you know, like, who are we and what are the values that we enjoy

00:53:57in our workplace, in the greatest workforce, the greatest military, on the face of the earth,

00:54:07and what are those values based on? For example, this hearing is in the House of Representatives.

00:54:14In our chamber, we have above the flag, etched in stone, in God we trust. In fact, it's on our

00:54:20currency. Is that God, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob? Genesis 12-3 is very clear

00:54:36about the circumstances that we're dealing with right now. We have the full face of Moses looking

00:54:45down on that body who gave us the law, which is the basis of our values, that we enjoy.

00:54:53Most of our leaders ask for God to bless America. Well, that's covered very well in Genesis 12-3.

00:55:01God says, if you bless Israel, I will bless you. And then he says, all the nations would be blessed

00:55:11through Israel. In my state of Georgia, we are a right-to-work state. There are 27 states.

00:55:22Lots of states are doing well, but Georgia has had the distinct honor of being the best state

00:55:27to do business in for the last 10 years in a row. Georgia has great companies

00:55:38who value their employees, both union and non-union. It is damaging to these great companies,

00:55:49those who are non-union, to say that they're bad actors because they're not union.

00:55:55Because, folks, we have a modern workforce. And based on the values I just described,

00:56:04the scriptures are very clear on how you deal with your workforce,

00:56:08the folks that work for you. They're very clear. I don't have time to line all that out today

00:56:14because I got a lot of questions to ask. But the bottom line is, you know, we've got to decide

00:56:21where we want to be as a nation. Right now, we're in crisis because we are a lawless land.

00:56:31And that's why we're having lots of these discussions, which are very difficult

00:56:36for a lot of the citizens of this country. Mr. Tavman, under Communication Workers of America

00:56:43versus Beck, the U.S. Supreme Court determined that workers represented by a union can choose

00:56:48to opt out of paying the portion of dues that funds union political activity. In your experience,

00:56:54do labor unions respect workers' decisions to exercise their Beck rights? Thank you,

00:57:00and the answer is absolutely not. It demonstrated in part by what we have in this case at MIT.

00:57:08It's in the exhibits to my testimony. The union tells people you must pay full dues or you must

00:57:18pay an equal amount of agency fees. Equal, which is false. And that's what they tell these graduate

00:57:25students. Are workers well informed of these rights? Not in the least. Can you discuss some

00:57:31ways that labor unions have used members' dues to support anti-Semitic and anti-Israel activities?

00:57:36All in my attachments to my statement. The unions, instead of trying to protect Jewish students

00:57:45from these pro-Hamas rioters, when the schools finally get up the nerve to suspend or expel the

00:57:54pro-Hamas rioters, the unions file lawsuits and unfair labor practice charges against the schools

00:58:02to stop them from suspending the pro-Hamas rioters. Ms. Koppmeier, I've got 30 seconds.

00:58:10Should your opinion have ALAA members stop participating in unions because of the rancor

00:58:17leading up to the passage of the resolution calling for the ceasefire? Yes, definitely. I mean,

00:58:23many of us have been stifled. We aren't able to be as vocal as we can. As I mentioned on Gaggle,

00:58:30Gaggle is this email listserv that members are able to post their emails, but Zionist members

00:58:37are constantly being bullied on it. It's not a safe space for any of us. Me, I will never go on

00:58:42Gaggle because I know that I'm going to be ridiculed and threatened, so I will never,

00:58:47so my voice is stifled. And every time we go on a joint council meeting, we are also,

00:58:52a joint council meeting is a membership-wide meeting. Again, our voices are stifled. We are

00:58:58called despicable names. We are bullied constantly in front of leadership. It's not just a few bad

00:59:04actors. That's why the leaders of this Nation have got to decide to protect our citizens.

00:59:11If, Mr. Sussman, I have more questions for you, I will submit those for the record. Mr. Chairman,

00:59:15I apologize. I ran over my time. My apologies to everybody for letting you go that long.

00:59:19Thank you, Mr. Allen. I recognize Mr. Courtney from Connecticut.

00:59:27I recognize Ms. Manning from North Carolina. Thank you, Mr. Chair and Ranking Member,

00:59:31and I want to thank our witnesses for sharing your stories. I am deeply disturbed about what

00:59:37you have been through, and I want to be very clear that anti-Semitism has no place in any workplace,

00:59:43in any school, in any union, or any other facet of American life. It is simply unacceptable,

00:59:50and I want to emphasize that President Biden's national strategy to counter anti-Semitism

00:59:56actually requires the Department of Labor to disseminate resources to unions on recognizing

01:00:03anti-Semitism and the importance of combating this hate in relation to workers' rights.

01:00:09The national strategy which I have put into my Combating Anti-Semitism Act would offer real,

01:00:20tangible solutions to combat anti-Semitism in our country, and that is why I am asking,

01:00:26once again, that we mark up my legislation and support the President's proposed strategy to take

01:00:33serious action to fight against the uptick of anti-Semitism and despicable hatred in our

01:00:41communities, and both of these could also be addressed by increasing funding to the EEOC

01:00:47and the OCR. With that said, Ms. LoFasso, you highlighted the legal duty of unions to

01:00:54fair representation and non-discrimination, and discrimination based on religious views

01:01:00in union organizations is illegal according to federal law. Is that correct? And Ms. Kopmar

01:01:07has highlighted her case in which four members of the Association of Legal Aid Attorneys filed

01:01:14charges to expel her from the union. These charges came after Ms. Kopmar secured a temporary

01:01:22restraining order to stop a union-wide vote from taking place on an anti-Israel,

01:01:28anti-Semitic resolution. Do these filings to expel Ms. Kopmar constitute retaliation in your opinion?

01:01:37Under those facts as you gave them, that sounds like retaliation to me.

01:01:41Thank you. Ms. Kopmar, I want to turn to you. I want to thank you for bravely coming here today

01:01:48to discuss your appalling experience in facing anti-Semitism within your union, your workplace,

01:01:56and you consider yourself generally a pro-union person, is that correct? That's very much correct.

01:02:03And would you agree that unions are instrumental in fighting for higher wages, better working

01:02:10conditions, and inclusivity in the workplace? Would you agree with that? Yes, I would. And like

01:02:16the ALAA, other unions, including the NEA, have weighed in on this issue. And does engaging in

01:02:24divisive political resolutions help support these goals, the goals of a union? No, it does not.

01:02:32Thank you. As part of your effort to strengthen the union and protect yourself from anti-Semitism,

01:02:38you mentioned that you filed charges with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission,

01:02:44is that correct? Yes, that is. And in your experience, would giving more funding to the EEOC

01:02:51help them provide the action that they need to help resolve claims like yours? I believe so,

01:02:58because I think, I know that we've been waiting for a while to receive a response from the EEOC,

01:03:04so more funding would then lead to a quicker response. Do you believe that legislation that

01:03:10increases education about workplace anti-Semitism and combating anti-Jewish hatred for union members

01:03:17would help address this problem? I think so, yes. As you've emphasized, the EEOC is a much-needed

01:03:26tool for union members, and all Americans who have experienced discrimination in any form.

01:03:33And we've had other hearings on this topic, and it has become clear that there are also

01:03:38awareness issues, that workers simply don't know that they can turn to the EEOC, or students don't

01:03:45know that they can turn to the OCR when they experience anti-Semitism or anti-Jewish hatred.

01:03:52So, more funding would be appropriate. Let me just close by saying that if my Republican

01:03:58colleagues are serious about combating anti-Semitism in the workplace or on college

01:04:05campuses, they need to do more than holding hearings. They need to stop presenting us

01:04:12with budgets that drastically cut the funding for the EEOC or the OCR, and they should bring

01:04:18my Countering Anti-Semitism Act to the House floor for a vote, so that we can give the government

01:04:25the tools they need to fight this rising form of discrimination. With that, I yield back.

01:04:33Thank you. Will now recognize Mr. Burleson for five minutes.

01:04:37Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Sussman, in your testimony, you noted that the GSU,

01:04:45the Graduate Student Union, they illegally threatened to terminate anyone who refused

01:04:51to pay for their activism. You filed a charge against the GSU with the NLRB

01:04:59regarding them violating your Beck rights. While the NLRB did agree that your rights

01:05:06had been violated, do you believe that they addressed the issue adequately?

01:05:10No. Can you elaborate?

01:05:13Sure. They required that the union send out a PDF stating our rights, and then the union

01:05:19officers continued to do exactly the same thing that they had been doing all along.

01:05:23So they just continued, they're not doing any enforcement whatsoever?

01:05:27That's correct. Have you noticed other examples of politically motivated activity within the

01:05:33GSU that they pushed on their members? They spent all their time protesting against Israel.

01:05:39I'm sorry, I didn't hear that. They spend all their time protesting against Israel.

01:05:43Okay. So they're spending so much time pushing against Israel.

01:05:49Did they take any steps whatsoever to protect the rights of their Jewish members?

01:05:55No. That you can recall?

01:05:56Not that I can recall. That's tragic.

01:06:01Mr. Taubman, in your testimony, you say that since October 7th and the attack on Israel,

01:06:06labor unions have become organizers of hateful anti-Jewish and anti-Israel propaganda and

01:06:12resolutions. From the discussions that you've had with workers, and it's tragic to hear that

01:06:16you're getting phone calls from all over the nation. I'll ask the same question. Have you

01:06:23seen where unions have stepped in to take steps to protect their Jewish members who are being

01:06:28discriminated against at this time?

01:06:30Never once. And I have taken calls from all over the country, universities, hospitals,

01:06:37legal aid. Not one employee has ever said to me, oh, the union has helped me, or oh,

01:06:43I can go to the union and they'll help me. None.

01:06:47Mr. Taubman, I hesitate to bring this up, but I just, there has been, I know that in my state,

01:06:55for example, there have been lawsuits and complaints against labor unions, particularly,

01:07:03we have areas where there are a high percentage of minorities, and yet the labor unions have a

01:07:10very low percentage of minorities in the single digits. And so there has been, there's often been

01:07:18a history, and I don't know if you have any comments about, it's just the nature of this

01:07:24system to create, that somehow emboldens discrimination within labor unions and the

01:07:33history of that.

01:07:34Sure. I think the bottom line is the old adage, absolute power corrupts absolutely. If I can

01:07:42tell you, pay me or you're going to lose your job because I can get you fired, I would call

01:07:49that absolute dictatorial power in the workplace. And unions spend other people's money. Justice

01:07:57Scalia in a Supreme Court case called Davenport recognized that unions have a unique privilege

01:08:04in this country, the privilege of demanding other people's money, which they can then go use

01:08:10on all of these sorts of far left, intersectional, woke politics, right? It's a lot more fun to go

01:08:20run around and riot on behalf of Hamas than it is to say, let's do a workplace grievance and see if

01:08:27we can get better wages in this place, because that's boring, you know, that's work. It's more

01:08:33fun to be, you know, intersectional leftists.

01:08:37Was the, do you think the Beck decision was kind of a compromise rather than throw out?

01:08:41Because I think that the forced unionization is a violation of the first amendment rights

01:08:48of association. So do you think that the Beck decision was a way to kind of split the baby and

01:08:55say, you don't have to join, you don't have to be a member, but you still have to pay. And many of

01:09:01the examples are that you have to pay the exact same amount. And so the question is, do people

01:09:07truly have a right of an association?

01:09:08Well, yes. And all of these decisions have been split the babies. If you go back to the original

01:09:15duty of fair representation decision, Steele versus Louisville and Nashville Railroad, where

01:09:20the unions were discriminating against black workers and refusing to let them join, the Supreme

01:09:27Court said, oh, we don't want to strike down the Railway Labor Act and these federal laws. So

01:09:32we'll create this thing called the duty of fair representation, and that'll fix the problem.

01:09:37Instead, they should have struck down these laws, which violate people's free association rights.

01:09:43And we're going to continue to litigate to make that happen. And hopefully it'll happen in my

01:09:48lifetime.

01:09:49Thank you for what you do. And I appreciate your comments. My time has expired.

01:09:53Thank you. And I'll recognize Mr. Scott from Virginia for five minutes.

01:09:57Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Dr. LoFasso, is it true that those who belong to unions

01:10:04generally get higher pay than non-union members?

01:10:08Yes.

01:10:09And do they get safer workplaces?

01:10:11I'm sorry, I didn't hear the question.

01:10:13Safer workplaces?

01:10:15Yes. I've actually written on that.

01:10:18And better benefits?

01:10:19Yes.

01:10:21Now, in paying union dues, you said that they could opt out of paying the full dues and just

01:10:31pay for those that go to representational expenses. Is that right?

01:10:39That's in fair share states. In right-to-work states, they don't have to pay any dues.

01:10:44But they get all of the benefits of the union efforts.

01:10:50That's correct. There's a duty of fair representation.

01:10:54Okay. Now, if you're paying your fair share and not the full dues,

01:11:00do you have to pay for political activities?

01:11:02No. No one has to pay for political activities.

01:11:05How about the annual summer cookout?

01:11:08No.

01:11:09How about the end-of-the-year holiday party?

01:11:12No.

01:11:13Just the representation of what the union is legally required for representation

01:11:19for benefits that they get.

01:11:21That's correct. And if they don't do those things, they can be sued,

01:11:24which I know Mr. Taubman knows very well, because that's what he does.

01:11:31Now, in terms of your right to pay the lower dues, that's your Beck right. Is that right?

01:11:37That's correct.

01:11:39And you're required to give your notice to opt out of the union.

01:11:44Is there any effort to let people know that they can opt into the union?

01:11:49No.

01:11:50Is that stacked against workers?

01:11:53My opinion, yes.

01:11:55Okay. Now, you've heard from the gentleman from Missouri

01:12:00the well-known fact that equal opportunity in unions is not always the case.

01:12:05If you find religious or racial discrimination in a union,

01:12:11what agency can you go to for relief?

01:12:14The EEOC.

01:12:16And what do you think of cutting funding for the EEOC, if that's your goal?

01:12:26It would be very difficult to enforce the rights of people.

01:12:35And for those of us who are interested in protecting workers' rights,

01:12:39what do you have to say about the law that allows employers to fire workers

01:12:43and often not have to pay anything?

01:12:48I think that that is selfish, actually, because it puts a burden on every other person to pay for

01:12:56their representation. If then that person is fired, the union still has to represent them,

01:13:03and that costs them money. And that individual does not have to pay the union anything.

01:13:09For those that do not belong to the union, the union has to represent you

01:13:16the same as they would a union member?

01:13:19Yes, otherwise it would be a breach of their duty of fair representation.

01:13:22Does that mean that if it's an individualized grievance, not just a general grievance,

01:13:29but an individualized grievance, a non-union member has the right to the same representation

01:13:36as dues-paying union members and right-to-work states?

01:13:41Yes, actually, the Supreme Court expressly said that in city disposal.

01:13:49I've introduced a bill protecting the right to organize that says employers who fire workers

01:13:56who are trying for union activities can often escape without any sanctions. Is that true?

01:14:03Yes.

01:14:04What is a sanction for illegally firing a worker?

01:14:09It would be back pay and reinstatement and minus mitigation.

01:14:15Minus mitigation means if you left a non-union shop and got a good union job and made more than

01:14:21you were making before, there would be no sanction.

01:14:24That would be correct.

01:14:26Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I yield back.

01:14:31Thank you. We'll now recognize Dr. Fox for five minutes.

01:14:38Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

01:14:41Ms. Kopar, you discussed in your testimony how the ALAA's pro-Palestine resolution

01:14:49impacted you and other dissenting union members.

01:14:53ALAA leadership later voted 124 to 18 against a resolution condemning Hamas

01:15:01and requesting the release of hostages.

01:15:03A paid union staffer said to all union membership

01:15:07that you sought to distract the union from its support for Palestine.

01:15:13What does the outcome of the leadership vote on releasing hostages say

01:15:18about those leading your union and the individuals they've hired to staff the union?

01:15:23Thank you, Dr. Fox.

01:15:25By voting down that resolution to release the hostages in such an overwhelming matter

01:15:33and overwhelming numbers, the union showed its true face that the lives of Jews don't matter.

01:15:39They dehumanized the hostages, including American hostages,

01:15:43including hostages that came from New York, from Long Island.

01:15:46By not recognizing that they were abducted violently and still being kept in Gaza,

01:15:50and they demonized us for showing our support of Israel.

01:15:54I mean, the things that were said in gaggle in the joint council meeting

01:15:58at that night was so shocking to all of us, all of the Zionist members,

01:16:03because it showed the true face of the union on that night.

01:16:07They don't recognize that hostages are entitled to freedom and human rights.

01:16:12And the simple reason for that is because they're Jewish.

01:16:15And to us, to me, that's anti-Semitism in its most basic form.

01:16:20Thank you very much.

01:16:21Mr. Taubman, for decades, you've litigated cases to protect the rights of individual

01:16:27workers who want to limit their association with labor unions who they want no part of.

01:16:33After the October 7 attack on Israel, was there an increase in the number of calls to you from

01:16:40workers seeking to associate from the union?

01:16:43Thank you for your leadership, Dr. Fox.

01:16:45The answer is that my phone has been ringing off the hook, and my colleagues'

01:16:50phones have been ringing off the hook from doctors, from teachers, from legal aid,

01:16:57from people all over the country wondering how they can get out of these horrible anti-Semitic unions.

01:17:05So what were the Jewish union members experiencing at their workplaces?

01:17:13The other people on the panel, like Mr. Sussman can tell you, because they're there on the front

01:17:19line, I can tell you anecdotally what I hear.

01:17:22Let me just read you from what some Jewish employees at CUNY, City University of New York,

01:17:30have said recently.

01:17:32Nails were found in their tires.

01:17:34Anti-Semitic flyers distributed all over the campus.

01:17:38Malicious and relentless campaigns to get them fired because they were Zionists.

01:17:45Discussions that observant Jews were undesirable for membership.

01:17:51Requests to remove observant Jewish faculty members.

01:17:55This is virtually Nazi-like from out of the 1930s.

01:18:00That's what these people are seeing on their campuses.

01:18:04Thank you very much.

01:18:06Mr. Sussman, your written testimony notes that in April the Graduate Student Union at

01:18:11MIT pushed through a ceasefire resolution that does not mention peace, hostages, or Hamas.

01:18:19The divisive resolution passed with very low voter participation.

01:18:24Did the union ever seek out the opinion of Jewish graduate students who they represent

01:18:32before pushing this resolution forward?

01:18:35They did not, and some Jewish students attended the general membership meeting where they

01:18:38discussed the resolution and asked the committee members who did they discuss the resolution

01:18:42with, and they said they looked inside themselves.

01:18:45Thank you very much.

01:18:47I want to thank our witnesses for being here today to shed additional light on the anti-Semitism

01:18:55that is occurring within unions and let the American people understand how deep, pervasive,

01:19:04and harmful this is to our Jewish citizens.

01:19:10Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

01:19:11I yield back.

01:19:12Thank you.

01:19:12We'll now recognize Ms. Houchen from Indiana for five minutes.

01:19:16Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

01:19:17Thank you to the ranking member.

01:19:18Thanks for being here to testify before us today.

01:19:21I really appreciated all of your opening statements.

01:19:26I've made very clear to this committee my stance on unionization, which has been heavily

01:19:30influenced by my own state's success as a right-to-work state, the state of Indiana.

01:19:35And I'm supportive of federal right-to-work legislation because I recognize that under

01:19:40current federal law, workers' individual liberties and their right to make decisions

01:19:45currently concerning unionization are poorly protected.

01:19:50In your testimony, Mr. Tomlin, you mentioned how some American unions are now discriminating

01:19:55against and threatening Jewish workers, and that has been especially prevalent following

01:20:00the October 7th attacks on Israel.

01:20:03What legislative reforms do you suggest to Congress that we should consider to protect

01:20:08workers' rights with respect to unions?

01:20:11Thank you for that fantastic question.

01:20:13Number one, certainly, is a national right-to-work law.

01:20:17This shouldn't be a state issue.

01:20:18This shouldn't even be a partisan issue.

01:20:20Nobody tells you you have to join a specific church or a specific group or you have to

01:20:25pay money to a private organization.

01:20:28That doesn't happen anywhere else in American life except for the privileged labor unions

01:20:34that have been doing this since the 30s and the 40s.

01:20:38That's the first thing, pass a national right-to-work law.

01:20:41The second thing is, if you're not going to pass a national right-to-work law, there are

01:20:44things like recertification elections automatically.

01:20:49Every member in this room stands for an election automatically every two years, every senator

01:20:55every six years.

01:20:56Do you know how often unions automatically stand for re-election?

01:21:00The answer is zero.

01:21:02They never have to stand for re-election unless the employees can band together to throw them

01:21:09out in a place like MIT with thousands of grad students that rotate through for one

01:21:15or two or three years.

01:21:17That will never happen.

01:21:18Ronald Reagan said the closest thing to eternal life on earth is a government program.

01:21:24I can tell you the closest thing to eternal life on earth for these unions is to represent

01:21:30a bunch of graduate students.

01:21:31Thank you.

01:21:33Dr. LoFasso, in your written testimony, you have a section about compelled union dues.

01:21:41And you note that under BEC, employees who work in right-to-work states can't be compelled

01:21:47to pay any dues or fees.

01:21:48I'm certainly glad that my state of Indiana is a right-to-work state so that people are

01:21:52not compelled to pay union dues or fees, even the cost of representation.

01:21:57However, you state that under BEC, employees who work in non-right-to-work states can only

01:22:01be required to pay their, quote, fair share of the cost of their representation.

01:22:06So my question to you is, what constitutes fair share for the cost of representation

01:22:11to an organization that is politically and ideologically opposed to some of their members'

01:22:16very being?

01:22:18Well, under that question, they would not have to pay for any of those activities.

01:22:26But they do have to pay for fees.

01:22:28Is that correct?

01:22:29They would.

01:22:31But they could also withdraw.

01:22:33They can withdraw by doing a Section 19 NLRB objection.

01:22:39So that means they would not have to pay any of those dues to the union.

01:22:43It seems like, though, we've had some conflicting testimony to that today, that there are compelled

01:22:48fees that must be paid.

01:22:50And we will get to that.

01:22:51You also mentioned in your opening statement that—

01:22:53That would be unlawful.

01:22:54Sorry, I'm going to reclaim my time.

01:22:55You also mentioned in your opening statement that Congress and this committee should focus

01:22:59on real problems instead of what we're talking about today.

01:23:03Do you not believe that eradicating anti-Semitism from labor unions is a real problem?

01:23:08I do, actually.

01:23:09But I don't think that that's the problem that is what's going on here.

01:23:14Because what we've heard today is that unions are—

01:23:17I'm going to reclaim my time.

01:23:18Would you not tell these other panelists, and you've heard their stories, that what

01:23:21they're dealing with is not a real problem?

01:23:24My personal opinion is irrelevant.

01:23:25Would you concede that Mr. Sussman's testimony constitutes a real problem?

01:23:30Yes or no?

01:23:30Because I've got only 46 seconds left.

01:23:32I don't have—I don't wish to give my personal opinion about anything.

01:23:37So you're not going to answer whether you think that the testimony we've heard here

01:23:41today from the fellow panelists constitutes real problems.

01:23:44Thank you for that.

01:23:44Okay, I'm going to move on to—

01:23:46I think that they are a real problem.

01:23:48Mr. Sussman, your written testimony notes that the union that represents you illegally

01:23:53threatened to terminate anyone who refused to pay for their activism.

01:23:57You filed charges against the GSU with the NLRB.

01:24:04The NLRB agreed that your rights had been violated.

01:24:06Did you think they adequately addressed the illegal union activity?

01:24:10They did not adequately address it, no.

01:24:12Thank you.

01:24:12I yield back.

01:24:14Thank you.

01:24:14We'll now recognize the Ranking Member, Mr. Desaulnier, for five minutes.

01:24:18Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

01:24:20I live by the expression—I think a high school teacher told us that the only absolute

01:24:26you should deal with is the absolute you shouldn't deal with absolutes.

01:24:30And what we're dealing with here is very binary in both instances of the labor movement,

01:24:36my view, and anti-Semitism, but oftentimes—and it should be binary in the sense of the rules.

01:24:43You shouldn't be anti-Semitic, period.

01:24:47You should value workers and their employers in a balanced way.

01:24:52So, Doctor, you talked about this.

01:24:54And to the witnesses, particularly Ms. Copeland and Mr. Sussman,

01:24:59we probably disagree on a lot of things, but I agree that your minority rights should be protected.

01:25:06But they are minority rights.

01:25:08So when we lose elections, those of us who believe in democracy,

01:25:12unless there is a demonstrable legal analysis of unfairness, you accept the results.

01:25:20So in that context, Doctor, you mentioned this a little earlier.

01:25:23Could you go a little bit further of how the law is meant to protect minority rights,

01:25:28but also the rights of the majority through the electoral process and the union movement?

01:25:33And one other thing, there was a comment earlier about unions being historically

01:25:40not including equity.

01:25:41I'm from California.

01:25:42The California building trade is 85 percent minority in women.

01:25:47The Labor Federation is a little bit below that nationally.

01:25:50Women now are a majority of the labor movement.

01:25:54And African Americans are at a higher proportion in a union and people of color

01:26:02than in non-union working places.

01:26:04Historically, we've changed over time on regional basis and other basis.

01:26:09But just for clarity, unions are very, very, very diverse right now.

01:26:14And that diversity is protected.

01:26:17Not absolutely.

01:26:18So, Doctor, with those comments, would you care to speak on any of that,

01:26:22the protection of minority rights and level of diversity in the union movement?

01:26:27Yes.

01:26:28First of all, I'd like to I feel my testimony was mischaracterized,

01:26:32that I do think anti-Semitism is a huge problem.

01:26:37But I just feel that I don't have I'm here for to talk about labor law.

01:26:43I am not an expert in that type of thing.

01:26:46And therefore, my opinion doesn't really matter.

01:26:49About that.

01:26:49What really matters is what these people are experiencing.

01:26:54And they're saying in there and there are great justice system will

01:27:00will they'll be able to go through it and they will get remedies.

01:27:04Now, unfortunately, NLRA remedies are very weak.

01:27:08And therefore, they can't get the remedies that they need.

01:27:11I think if they were if the NLRB were funded,

01:27:14then they maybe could afford training or more staffing to get this through.

01:27:21In terms of minority rights, there are many things that if a union

01:27:28discriminates against anyone, including Jews, any type of religion, any person of any race,

01:27:37then that would be against the law.

01:27:40That would be against Title seven.

01:27:43And then that would be would be investigated by that agency.

01:27:50They also could and even and if they do that, I think there's a difference between what

01:27:56about people who are breaking the law and what the law is.

01:28:00Obviously, we have laws because people break laws.

01:28:04We don't regulate things that don't aren't a problem.

01:28:07So we have solutions here for minority rights, and that's important.

01:28:15What we don't have, and that's what I meant by the real problem,

01:28:19are workers rights that are meaningful, that can enforce this.

01:28:24Obviously, anti-Semitism is absolutely wrong.

01:28:30Just like all hate.

01:28:31You have said that the majority party's union members right to no act

01:28:37is a solution in search of a problem, an example of over-regulation.

01:28:41Would you expand on that?

01:28:44Sure.

01:28:47The we have already regulated this area.

01:28:52We have Ronald Coase, who is a great libertarian economist,

01:28:56said you only regulate when there's a market failure.

01:29:00He's often misstated as never regulations.

01:29:03We only regulate when there's a market failure.

01:29:07Here, what we have is what the committee seems to be focusing on

01:29:13is the stuff that's already regulated and has remedies.

01:29:17Instead of what the real problem is, which is getting remedies for an unfair labor practice.

01:29:24Mr. Sussman had an unfair labor practice problem.

01:29:28Labor practice problem.

01:29:30That's the real problem.

01:29:32And if a union actually will say that he had to join,

01:29:37if the union said that he had to join them,

01:29:40they were wrong, and they violated the law, and they should be prosecuted.

01:29:50Thank you.

01:29:50I now recognize myself for five minutes.

01:29:54Mr. Taubman, I'm thankful to live in and represent Virginia,

01:30:00a right-to-work state, where employees thankfully cannot be forced to pay union dues.

01:30:06I certainly didn't choose to pay any union dues when I was working in a unionized auto factory

01:30:11during my college time.

01:30:14And God forbid that we should ever have realized into law the Democrats' dream of this PRO Act,

01:30:20which essentially says to every employer across the country,

01:30:24embrace a union or close your doors.

01:30:27Two options that would result from that.

01:30:29But you've noted, as incredible as this is today,

01:30:33that under federal law, Jewish workers who live in non-right-to-work states,

01:30:38who suffer in non-right-to-work states,

01:30:40can be forced to pay union dues that express hateful...

01:30:47pay dues to a union, I'm sorry,

01:30:48that expresses hateful anti-Semitic rhetoric or views.

01:30:53And you noted, but I'll just ask you again,

01:30:55can you say any other aspect of American life where an individual is forced

01:31:00to fund a private entity that expresses speech that they find hateful,

01:31:05threatening, or objectionable?

01:31:06Thankfully, I know of no other example.

01:31:10Let's hope that this becomes the isolated example that we have to fight versus

01:31:15some occurring more broadly in our society.

01:31:18Ms. Kopmar, it seems that the terribly offensive

01:31:22ceasefire resolution that you've described,

01:31:25that was three days after the October 7 brutal attack,

01:31:31never mentions the Hamas terrorists,

01:31:33and was ultimately adopted by the union.

01:31:37But that was really a continuation, wasn't it?

01:31:39And an escalation of the union having allowed anti-Semitism

01:31:43to fester under the surface for months, wasn't it?

01:31:47Yes, that is true.

01:31:48Can you talk about that, how it had been allowed just to continue

01:31:51prior to that resolution?

01:31:53Yes, actually prior to the ALAA's resolution,

01:31:57there were two additional resolutions that had been introduced by other ALAA chapters,

01:32:02namely the Bronx Defenders as well as CAMDA chapters.

01:32:06Those particular resolutions were also very anti-Semitic.

01:32:11Very anti-Semitic.

01:32:13The Bronx Defenders resolution actually was advocating,

01:32:17or at least it advocated for the Hamas violence against Israel.

01:32:26And so there was this hostile work environment

01:32:30that had already been fomented by these other chapters.

01:32:35There had been inter-office emails that were at Legal Aid in the city,

01:32:40where people were questioning whether or not Jewish attorneys

01:32:44can actually represent our clients.

01:32:47And so there had been this turmoil that had been going on

01:32:53that fomented itself with this resolution that was introduced in November.

01:32:59You referenced in your testimony verbally and your written testimony

01:33:03about some of these terrible, hateful,

01:33:07offensive messaging through the gaggle, the internal message board of ALAA.

01:33:16Things, as you referenced, and you said that we were called fascist genociders,

01:33:20genocide deniers, snitches, and Zionist goals.

01:33:23We were told to go kill ourselves.

01:33:25The slogan from the River of the Sea was routinely used, and so forth.

01:33:31Was, in light of this, did ALAA leadership ever intervene or condemn these messages,

01:33:42or even call for some semblance of civility in the face of what the Jewish members,

01:33:48who they purport to represent, were having to suffer through?

01:33:52Never. They never stopped the bullying.

01:33:55They never called anyone out to stop the bullying and to stop the vitriol.

01:33:59And in fact, they doubled down by after that one joint council meeting that we had,

01:34:04where we introduced the release the hostage resolution.

01:34:07That very next day, a paid ALAA staffer actually blamed the Zionist minority

01:34:15for all of the issues that it was having.

01:34:18They blamed us.

01:34:19And so they actually have been promoting this.

01:34:23They've actually been dividing the membership.

01:34:26They've been fostering the hostile work environment.

01:34:30So no, they've done nothing to tamp it down.

01:34:32And it's only been getting worse.

01:34:34Everyone should be concerned about the unique, horrific situation in the world and in the

01:34:41country today, where when Israel can be horrifically attacked, is blamed for an attack.

01:34:48And when Jews are discriminated against, harassed, intimidated, threatened, and harmed,

01:34:52Jews are blamed for that.

01:34:54That is unique.

01:34:55And it should be condemned unequivocally across the country.

01:34:59And everyone should be concerned about that.

01:35:00With that, I would like to recognize the ranking member for his closing remarks.

01:35:05Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

01:35:06And I would agree with your overall sentiment.

01:35:09But I found it frustrating as a longtime supporter of Israel's right to exist, having a very

01:35:16good relationship with the Jewish community in the San Francisco Bay Area in California

01:35:21for 35 years I've been elected office, but also being a pro-union in this instance,

01:35:27pro-democracy.

01:35:28And one of the reasons I support Israel's right to exist is it's a democracy.

01:35:32But within that, just like in America, that doesn't mean I agree with the current, or

01:35:37at any particular time, administration.

01:35:40I disagree with the policies after October 7th of the current administration in Israel.

01:35:46That doesn't make me antisemitic.

01:35:49That makes me a believer in democracy.

01:35:52And we get in trouble in democracies, just my observation in history, when we start assuming

01:35:59that if you disagree with the majority party of any democracy, that you are inherently

01:36:04against their god, or you have the moral authority.

01:36:10And we all have to reflect on that.

01:36:12Because I think liberals do it.

01:36:14Conservatives do it.

01:36:15We just have to reflect in proportion.

01:36:18In relationship to what the testimony we've had here today, Mr. Chairman, I'd be delighted

01:36:23to talk to you about how we can further minority rights to make sure they're protected.

01:36:28Because I think it does a tremendous disservice, and your testimony here adds a disservice

01:36:36to the majority of people who are in the labor movement, who I would hope very strongly

01:36:40would not do what you have described was your example.

01:36:45So I make that an offer.

01:36:47Be happy to meet with you as well to see if I can help make sure that the disincentives

01:36:52are there to protect minority rights.

01:36:56Combating antisemitism and other forms of hate transcends political divisions.

01:37:01I'm being a little bit repetitive here.

01:37:04It's a moral imperative that demands our unwavering commitment.

01:37:07We must ensure our workplaces are not only safe, but also inclusive, fostering environments

01:37:13where every individual, regardless of their background, can thrive and contribute fully.

01:37:18This hearing also importantly highlighted the many ways that law provides recourse for

01:37:23workers who feel they may have been mistreated by unions.

01:37:27And as I said, I'd be willing to work on remedies if that's not the case, including

01:37:32funding agencies and disincentives for people who do violate the law.

01:37:38As well as the shortfalls of our current law when it comes to informing workers of their

01:37:41right to organize with their co-workers free of employer coercion.

01:37:48I extend my sincere appreciation to the witnesses, experts, and advocates whose contributions

01:37:54have enriched today's discussion.

01:37:57Thank you all for being here and taking the time to prepare for this hearing over the

01:38:01July 4th holiday week.

01:38:03Moving forward, we must strengthen our support of initiatives, in my view, like the PRO Act,

01:38:07that bolster protections for workers and uphold their rights in the workplace.

01:38:11By doing so, we can build an economy that prioritizes fairness and opportunity for

01:38:17all.

01:38:18And I yield back.

01:38:21Thank you.

01:38:21I now recognize myself for closing remarks.

01:38:24I want to apologize to the Jewish Americans here today and across the country for the

01:38:29necessity of having this hearing.

01:38:32The concerns here today have been specifically directed towards union bosses and union leadership

01:38:38across the country.

01:38:39Again, how we got to the point where this hearing is necessary, but it's demonstrated

01:38:43by the content of what's been discussed here today and by the testimony of our witnesses

01:38:47and what they've experienced.

01:38:49And while this might be a difficult topic, I'm glad today's hearing could shine a light

01:38:54on the continued problems of anti-Semitism in this country, much of which is unique to

01:38:59our Jewish friends, including, again, among the leadership of our nation's labor unions.

01:39:06For some reason, many union leaders would rather double down on defending a terrorist

01:39:11organization than focus on local workers' issues.

01:39:18They would rather sow division than unite workers around areas of common interest, and

01:39:23they're willing to abandon pro-Israel Jewish employees who then have to face coercion or

01:39:30retaliation as they fight themselves for their rights.

01:39:35It reinforces my belief that unions have long outlived their usefulness.

01:39:39I'll say it again.

01:39:40Unions have long outlived their usefulness in this country.

01:39:44As always, it's worth noting and repeating that, thankfully, private sector unionization

01:39:49is at the lowest level ever recorded in America, at 6%.

01:39:54The first part of a union should be protecting the rights of its members, and unions that

01:39:59fail to do so should be held accountable.

01:40:01This committee will continue to examine ways to strengthen current law to protect union

01:40:06members from abuses and misguided pursuits.

01:40:10So, again, I thank our witnesses for taking time today to share your stories and your

01:40:14insights and your experiences today.

01:40:16Without objection, there being no further business, this committee stands adjourned.

Bob Good Leads House Education Committee Hearing On Confronting Union Antisemitism

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