Today, Virginia Foxx, who will begin her term as chair of the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Education and the Workplace this January, announced that she believes that unions have lost their “reason for being”. Foxx attempted to justify her comments by pointing to the numerous laws that protect workers’ rights. Eric Hauser, a spokesman for the AFL-CIO, criticized Foxx’s claims and believes that strong labor organization is crucial when the U.S. economy is this volatile. One of Foxx’s top priorities during her term as committee chair is to tailor and eliminate many of the Obama administration’s labor initiatives.
See "New House labor committee chair questions need for unions", Robert Iafolla, Reuters, December 5, 2016