The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights

As the nation faces a severe recession, workers will need more protection than ever.

The Employee Free Choice Act, which is pending in Congress, will make it easier for workers to form a union by giving them a choice in how they want to form one, either by ballot or by getting a majority of employees to sign a union-authorization card.

"Unions provide a buffer in difficult economic times. They help preserve economic benefits and maintain job security. Moreover, unions do so in a manner that is sensitive to the needs of business," said Wade Henderson, president and CEO of the LCCR, in testimony before the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions yesterday.

Union members on average receive a higher wage than non-union employees, are far more likely to have health care benefits, and have a greater share of health care benefits paid for by their employers.