Joined by NFFE's National President Rick Brown and Congressman Michael McNulty, Kirsten Gillibrand attends labor rally in Watervliet to celebrate several recent labor endorsements

Watervliet NY - Standing in view of the Watervliet Arsenal, Kirsten Gillibrand was joined today by Rick Brown, National President of the National Federation of Federal Employees (NFFE) and Congressman Michael McNulty to celebrate Gillibrand's latest endorsements from the labor community.  Kirsten Gillibrand is the Democratic candidate for NY's 20th Congressional District.

Rick Brown announced, "There is a reason that so many different union representatives are standing with Kirsten - some of you have endorsed John Sweeney in the past - but your presence today demonstrates that we are, and we will hold our lawmakers accountable.  Kirsten Gillibrand will be a better advocate for labor, NFFE is proud to endorse her candidacy."

After Rick Brown's rousing introduction, Congressman Michael McNulty addressed the crowd, "November 7th is a day where the people of upstate New York can choose to stay the course with President Bush, or decide to take this country is another direction.  Kirsten Gillibrand understands we are on the wrong track.  She is running around this district every day with a positive message of hope for our working families, I look forward to welcoming her to Washington as a colleague."

Kirsten Gillibrand has been running on a platform that supports working families and fair wages, "Our district has all of the right elements to strengthen and renew our economy if we just make the right investments. We have a unique mix of agricultural, manufacturing, small business and entrepreneurial, technological, environmental and alternative energy industries that can be harnessed to provide good jobs four our families and keep our young people here."

Gillibrand continued, "In Washington, I will be a strong advocate for our working families.  Our nation's strength is due in part to our unions' efforts to provide living wages and safe working environments.  Continuing that history of supporting unions keeps America's labor force and our economy strong."

When elected, Kirsten Gillibrand will:

• Advocate for the right of individual workers to organize and engage in collective bargaining.
• Fight for a fair living wage. Minimum wage should be a straight up or down vote so we know where our leaders stand on the issue and not connected to "poison pill" measures like the estate tax.
• Support measures and legislation to encourage the creation, expansion and protection of defined benefit plans.
• Oppose measures to privatize social security.
• Protect pension plans and the retirement savings of workers who participate in 401(k).
• Support the Employee Free Choice Act as well as similar acts that provide for harsher penalties against companies who subvert their workers' rights to the organizing process.
• Work to not only uphold and fully fund all current OSHA standards but to broaden the Act's protections by extending coverage to the millions of state and local employees who are currently excluded.
• Work to strengthen Davis-Bacon Act enforcement  
• Ensure that trade agreements are pursued in conjunction with
• insuring first that foreign countries meet labor, environmental and health standards.  
• Work to repeal the Bush tax cuts for the top income brackets to alleviate the burden on our low- and middle-income families.
• Fight to restore fiscal discipline to Washington.