Schakowsky, Labor Caucus Co-Chairs Lead 120+ Democrats in Urging Maximus to Sign Neutrality Agreement with Workers
WASHINGTON – U.S. Representative Jan Schakowsky (IL-09), a Chief Deputy Whip and member of the Congressional Labor Caucus, and Co-Chairs of the Labor Caucus Reps. Debbie Dingell (MI-06), Steven Horsford (NV-04), Donald Norcross (NJ-01), and Mark Pocan (WI-02) led over 120 Democratic Members of Congress in a letter urging Maximus to respect the voices of their employees by pledging not to interfere in any union organizing activities and adopting a neutrality agreement.
“As you know, it is the policy of the United States to encourage collective bargaining and to allow workers to organize without interference under the National Labor Relations Act, and we believe that a neutrality agreement is the best path forward to advance these goals,” wrote the lawmakers. “Additionally, we have heard from our constituents about the importance of ensuring reliable call center services for Federal programs, and, given the number of recent work stoppages at Maximus, we believe a neutrality agreement would ensure reliability going forward.
Right now, Maximus is under contract with the Centers of Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and is responsible for answering calls from millions of Americans seeking help with accessing health coverage through Medicare and the Affordable Care Act (ACA).
“Unfortunately, we have heard from call center workers themselves that Maximus has responded to their efforts to organize their union with a campaign of intimidation aimed at silencing workers, resulting in numerous unfair labor practice (ULP) charges,” continued the lawmakers.
This month, the Communications Workers of America filed an unfair labor practice charge against Maximus alleging that the President and Chief Executive Officer, Bruce Caswell, discouraged employees from forming a union by falsely claiming their wages are controlled by law, not by Maximus.
A neutrality agreement simply consists of an employer agreeing not to engage in unfair activities that are intended to influence workers’ decision to form a union,” concluded the lawmakers. “We believe that a neutrality agreement will ensure that Maximus respects workers’ statutory rights to freedom of association and collective bargaining.”
This letter has been endorsed by the Communications Workers of America and AFL-CIO.
“Federal call center workers at Maximus, who are mostly Black and Latina women in the South, have been organizing with CWA since 2017 to fight for living wages and affordable healthcare, even walking off the job and taking to the streets multiple times to demand good jobs. This Congressional letter calling on Maximus to respect the right of these workers to freely and fairly choose union representation without employer interference could not have come at a better time. Instead of showing these workers the respect they deserve, Maximus has ramped up its anti-union campaign in recent weeks. It is shameful when any employer tries to intimidate workers, but especially so when the employer makes virtually all of its money from government contracts,” said CWA President Claude Cummings Jr.
“I’ve worked at a federal call center run by Maximus for eight years, helping thousands of Americans access healthcare that I can’t afford myself. Too often, I’m forced to choose between my next meal and doctor appointments for my stage 2 kidney failure. That’s why I’m organizing a union, because my coworkers and I are essential workers who help millions of our fellow Americans and we deserve better. But instead of treating us fairly, Maximus has stepped up its union-busting efforts, sending intimidating emails to my coworkers and falsely telling us that Maximus can’t raise our wages because they’re set by the government. I heard this from CEO Bruce Caswell himself when he came to Hattiesburg last month. But I’m not backing down, and my coworkers and I will continue to raise our voices and walk off the job if we have to – to ensure the company hears our demands for living wages and affordable health insurance,” said Anna Flemmings, Hattiesburg, MS.
In addition to Reps. Schakowsky, Dingell, Horsford, Norcross, and Pocan, cosigners include Reps. Gabe Amo, Becca Balint, Joyce Beatty, Jamaal Bowman, Brendan Boyle, Julia Brownley, Nikki Budzinski, Cori Bush, Yadira Caraveo, André Carson, Greg Casar, Sean Casten, Kathy Castor, Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, Judy Chu, Yvette Clarke, Emanuel Cleaver, Steve Cohen, Gerald Connolly, Angie Craig, Jasmine Crockett, Jason Crow, Danny Davis, Diana DeGette, Rosa DeLauro, Suzan DelBene, Christopher Deluzio, Mark DeSaulnier, Lloyd Doggett, Adriano Espaillat, Bill Foster, Lois Frankel, Maxwell Frost, Ruben Gallego, John Garamendi, Jesús García, Robert Garcia, Sylvia Garcia, Daniel Goldman, Jimmy Gomez, Josh Gottheimer, Al Green, Raúl Grijalva, Val Hoyle, Jonathan Jackson, Pramila Jayapal, Henry Johnson, Marcy Kaptur, William Keating, Robin Kelly, Timothy Kennedy, Ro Khanna, Daniel Kildee, Derek Kilmer, Andy Kim, Raja Krishnamoorthi, Greg Landsman, Rick Larsen, Barbara Lee, Summer Lee, Ted Lieu, Zoe Lofgren, Stephen Lynch, Seth Magaziner, Betty McCollum, James McGovern, Robert Menendez, Grace Meng, Gwen Moore, Jared Moskowitz, Frank Mrvan, Kevin Mullin, Jerrold Nadler, Grace Napolitano, Wiley Nickel, Eleanor Norton, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ilhan Omar, Frank Pallone, Brittany Pettersen, Chellie Pingree, Katie Porter, Ayanna Pressley, Delia Ramirez, Jamie Raskin, Deborah Ross, Patrick Ryan, Andrea Salinas, Linda Sánchez, Adam Schiff, Kim Schrier David Scott, Mikie Sherrill, Elissa Slotkin, Adam Smith, Eric Sorensen, Darren Soto, Melanie Stansbury, Haley Stevens, Marilyn Strickland, Thomas Suozzi, Eric Swalwell, Emilia Sykes, Mark Takano, Shri Thanedar, Bennie Thompson, Dina Titus, Rashida Tlaib, Ritchie Torres, Lori Trahan, Lauren Underwood, Gabe Vasquez, Marc Veasey, Nydia Velázquez, Debbie Wasserman Schultz, Bonnie Watson Coleman, Susan Wild, Nikema Williams, and Frederica Wilson.
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