It’s staggering. More than 17 percent of construction trades workers are looking for jobs. (And in some areas of the country, it’s 20 percent, 30 percent or more.)
Meanwhile, 68,842 American bridges are deficient. More than 282 million vehicles cross those bridges every day. And many public transit systems have serious problems and are in need of critical upgrades.
Workers in the construction and transportation sectors urgently need jobs. And there’s tons of work to be done to fix our crumbling infrastructure and ensure public safety. But obstructionists in the House of Representatives—led by House Speaker John Boehner—are refusing to pass the Senate’s bipartisan surface transportation bill.
The Senate already has done its job. A supermajority—74 out of 100 senators—came together to pass a bipartisan surface transportation bill. This two-year, $109 billion funding bill will support millions of jobs and help build and maintain safe and strong highways, roads, bridges and transit systems.
But Speaker Boehner and other House GOP leaders are holding jobs and public safety hostage while they push an extreme, partisan agenda. Their proposed legislation guts transit funding, privatizes public-sector work to reward campaign donors, kills thousands of jobs and raids the pensions of federal workers.
Although the economy is slowly getting better, construction and transportation workers cannot afford to go without work while House Republican leaders engage in power grabs.
Be a Seed for Change 
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