US President Joe Biden supports an effort of Capitol Hill staffers to unionize, said White House press secretary Jen Psaki on Tuesday (local time).
"He (Biden) does. He supports the right of any individual to seek to join a union, to collective bargain. And of course, Capitol Hill staffers are certain individuals who are pursuing that," she said in response to a question.
Capitol staffers generally are paid much less than peers at private businesses, The New York Post reported.
About 1,200 Capitol workers, or roughly one in eight full-time staffers, earn less than USD 42,610, the minimum "living wage" for a single adult in DC, according to a recent survey from nonprofit Issue One. Congressional offices generally supplement their cheap labour with unpaid interns, The NY Post reported.
On Friday, a group of congressional staffers announced that they plan to organize a union for aides who work in lawmakers' offices and for committees on Capitol Hill.
A statement, cited by The New York Post read: "After more than a year of organizing as a volunteer group of congressional staffers, we are proud to publicly announce our efforts to unionize the personal offices and committees of Congress, in solidarity with our fellow workers across the United States and the world."
A measure to allow Capitol Hill political staff to unionize would have to pass the House and Senate and would likely face stiff resistance from Republicans in the Senate, where 60 votes are required for most legislation, according to the media report.
( With inputs from ANI )
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