Additional Resources
Available Through the Internet
UAW activists can obtain additional information on legislative issues through a number of resources that are available on the Internet.
INFORMATION ON ALL FEDERAL LEGISLATION
The Library of Congress maintains excellent website from which you can view and copy past and pending federal legislation, find out who has co-sponsored legislation, and check the status of legislation. You can also access the Web sites of all members of Congress and all House and Senate committees. Many committees put up copies of testimony from hearings and other useful information on their Web sites.
http://thomas.loc.gov (do not use “www” in front of the address)
RESOURCE FOR FEDERAL, STATE AND LOCAL AGENCIES
www.firstgov.gov is the home page of the U.S. government’s official Web portal for all government agencies, with links to state and local Web sites as well.
RESOURCES ON LABOR LAW
The American Rights at Work organization, led by former Michigan Rep. David Bonior, has a Web site packed with useful information about union organizing and deficiencies in the current laws at
http://www.americanrightsatwork.org
“Unfair Advantage: Workers’ Freedom of Association in the United States under International Human Rights Standards,” Human Rights Watch, 2000, is available at
http://www.hrw.org/reports/2000/uslabor
Cornell University’s Web site has information and links concerning domestic and international labor laws at
http://www.law.cornell.edu/topics/labor.html
The Web site of the National Labor Relations Board has the statute in English and in Spanish as well as board and ALJ decisions and more.
RESOURCES ON MINIMUM WAGE
The Economic Policy Institute (EPI) has an excellent package of current information on the minimum wage at
http://www.epi.org/content.cfm/issueguides_minwage
Look up state-by-state minimum wages at
http://www.dol.gov/esa/minwage/america.htm
RESOURCES ON OVERTIME AND COMP TIME
EPI has briefing papers on the Bush administration’s overtime rule
http://www.epinet.org/content.cfm/overtime_2003
For up-to-date information on comp time, go to
and enter comp time in the search.
RESOURCES ON UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE
The National Employment Law Project has a wealth of resources on its Web site
http://www.nelp.org/ui/index.cfm
EPI has up-to-date information and statistics, including a UI calculator with which you can determine unemployment benefits in all 50 states
http://www.epinet.org/content.cfm/datazone_uicalc_index
The Center for Budget Policy and Priorities includes papers about unemployment insurance on its Web site. Go to
and enter unemployment insurance in the search.
The Center for Policy Alternatives has useful information about UI, including model state legislation, on its Web site at
RESOURCES ON TRADE and TAA
The AFL-CIO has good information about trade and the global economy, including the FTAA, at
http://www.aflcio.org/issues/jobseconomy/globaleconomy/
EPI has useful, up-to-date data and briefing papers on trade and globalization, including its adverse impact on U.S. manufacturing jobs, at
http://www.epi.org/content.cfm/subjectpages_trade
For basic information about TAA, visit the Department of Labor’s Web site
http://www.doleta.gov/tradeact/
NELP’s Web site has a newly revised worker’s guide to TAA at
http://www.nelp.org/ui/initiatives/unemployed/taa_manual.cfm
RESOURCES ON JOB TRAINING
Working for America Institute has much useful information about job training programs, including the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) and Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA), on its Web site
http://www.workingforamerica.org
RESOURCES ON VETERANS’ ISSUES
The Web site of the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee is a source of information on federal legislation
The Disabled American Veterans has a section on current legislation of interest to veterans
http://www.dav.org/voters/index.html
RESOURCES ON WORKPLACE SAFETY AND HEALTH
The AFL-CIO has good, current information on workplace health and safety issues at
http://www.aflcio.org/issues/safety/
Other reliable Internet sources include:
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
The American Industrial Hygiene Association
The American Public Health Association at
RESOURCES ON FEDERAL REGULATORY ISSUES
Visit the Web site of OMB Watch for current information on federal regulatory issues at
RESOURCES ON BUDGET and TAX ISSUES
Center on Budget Policy and Priorities has excellent papers on current federal budget and tax issues on its Web site
Citizens for Tax Justice has useful information on taxes and the federal budget deficit on its Web site
The Fair Taxes For All Coalition is also a good resource on tax issues, including the estate tax. Their Web site is
OMBWatch provides good coverage on federal budget issues on its Web site,
RESOURCES ON HEALTH CARE
Kaiser Family Foundation has good information on Medicare, Medicaid and other health care issues on its Web site
Families USA also is a leading source of information on health care issues, including Medicare, uninsured children and adults, and prescription drugs. Their Web site is
www.familiesusa.org
RESOURCES ON CIVIL and HUMAN RIGHTS ISSUES
The Leadership Conference on Civil Rights maintains a Web site with useful information on a wide range of civil and human rights issues, including immigration, at
The Coalition of Labor Union Women has resources relevant to women trade unionists at
The National Committee on Pay Equity has up-to-date information on legislation and useful fact sheets on pay equity at
The National Women’s Law Center has useful materials on women and employment, education, health, Social Security, and taxes at
To learn more about legislative efforts to secure congressional voting rights for citizens of the District of Columbia, visit the Web site of DC Vote at
For information about the Legal Services Corporation and to access the LSC report on the underserved legal needs of the poor, visit
RESOURCES ON SOCIAL SECURITY
Americans United to Protect Social Security has good materials for use in the fight to save the program from Bush’s privatization scheme
http://www.americansforsocialsecurity.com
The Campaign for America’s Future has useful materials at
http:/www.socialsecurity.ourfuture.org
The National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare is another resource
CONSUMER ISSUES
For consumer information on drugs, go to the Food and Drug Administration’s Web site
For consumer information on a range of issues, visit the Web site of U.S. Public Interest Research Group
The nonprofit Consumers Union maintains a Web site with materials on a number of consumer issues at
RESOURCES ON PRIVATIZATION
The Web sites of the American Federation of Government Employees and the AFl-CIO have useful information about privatization of federal jobs and programs:
RESOURCE ON LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT INFORMATION
The Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics maintains a Web site with a huge amount of valuable data on wages, employment, productivity, business costs, etc. It has a handy inflation calculator, where you can easily determine the inflation-adjusted value of a dollar figure from as far back as 1913.
NEW RESOURCE ON FEDERAL GOVERNMENT CONTRACTS AND GRANTS
Launched in October 2006 by OMB Watch and the Center for Responsive Politics, a data-rich, searchable Web site containing all federal contracts and grants over $25,000.
RESOURCE ON ELECTED OFFICIALS AND PUBLIC POLICY
The public-maintained online encyclopedia, Wikipedia, has generally up-to-date and reliable information on elected officials and on a range of legislative issues.
