Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) and AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka appeared together Wednesday at a Center for American Progress event to call on the U.S. Senate to move forward on confirming President Obama's nominations to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). If those confirmations fail to be approved, the board would fall below a quorum on Aug. 1 and no longer would be able to do its job of protecting America's workers.

The workplace rights of millions of working people will be at risk if the U.S. Senate does not approve President Obama’s five bipartisan nominees to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). On July 10, AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka will join Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) for a discussion of the NLRB’s role as an advocate for all U.S. workers, how the board can function in the face of Republican attempts to prevent it from doing its job and potential Senate rule changes to end the obstructionism that’s blocking NLRB nominees.

The anti-middle class agenda of conservative legislators across the country is not limited to attacks on collective bargaining, education and the nation’s safety net.  Even before some legislatures took up state budgets and anti-worker legislation, they began trotting out claims of potential voter fraud to try and disenfranchise large groups of voters.

We know it. Now yet another study proves it: Unions are essential for building a strong middle class–and rebuilding the middle class is key to restoring the U.S. economy.

“Unions Make the Middle Class,” released today by the Center for American Progress Action Fund, (CAP) points out that unions make the middle class by ensuring workers have a strong voice in both the workplace  and in our democracy. The study found when unions are strong they are able to ensure that workers are paid fair wages, receive the training they need to advance to the middle class, and are considered in corporate decision-making processes.