Workers join together and unionize to improve their wages, benefits, and working conditions. Yet a full year after voting to form a union, 52 percent of new unions still haven't been able to secure any improvements because their employers have used delay tactics to avoid signing a first contract.

It stands to reason that if a majority of workers vote to form a union in their workplace, then a union they shall have! Yet the sad reality is that all too often, employers do not respect the outcomes of union elections. The current labor law is grossly slanted in favor of employers and anti-union corporations who engage in unproductive "bad faith bargaining" or delay tactics to keep workers from getting a fair deal. The resistance to collective bargaining has only gotten worse in recent years. Even in cases when workers do successfully win their union election, over half of of new unions still have no contract one full year later after they are certified because companies refuse to negotiate in good faith. And two years later, 37 percent of workers still have no contract.

Congress needs to stand up for the workers who deserve the chance to gain fair first contracts. As a new ad by American Rights at Work points out, any legislation to reform our current labor system must include an arbitration option to push management to complete negotiations in a fair, timely manner---and stop anti-union corporations from gaming the system.

This is the third ad in the series by ARAW making the case for arbitration as a critical part of the Employee Free Choice Act. The ad will run in Roll Call, The Hill, Politico and CQ. Read more about ARAW's ad campaign and view their first two ads here.

It took swine flu, and 13,000 petition signatures, to remind Republican Senators that cynical politicking can have real consequences for American lives.

After weeks of Republican maneuvers to delay a floor vote, the Senate yesterday voted 65-31 to confirm Kathleen Sebelius as HHS Secretary. Nine Republicans, including Sens. Snowe and Collins of Maine, joined Democratic colleagues in the "yea" column. (See how your Senator voted here.)

Immediately following the vote, Sebelius boarded a plane to Washington, where she was later sworn into office. President Obama later explained why was sworn in so quickly:

"We wanted to swear her in right away because we've got a significant public health challenge that requires her immediate attention. We need all hands on deck."

It's too bad it had to come to this--a near-pandemic that's already infected more than one thousand people--to drive home the urgency of filling vital government posts.

Secretary Sebelius will begin today working with Congress to increase funding for pandemic flu preparedness, vaccine production and aid to state and local governments. With more infections occurring daily, her confirmation is not a moment too soon.

In the past few days, our efforts were covered by scores of news outlets, including CNN and Politico. Republican Senators faced hard questions from reporters on their blocking of an HHS Secretary--especially in the midst of a growing health crisis.

Secretary Sebelius will have a major job ahead of her, but thanks in part to the efforts of health care activists nationwide, she's now able to address these challenges head-on.