Posts tagged Labor Secretary
ATA Expresses Concern Over Labor Secretary Nominee Julie Su
March 17, 2023 // In a letter to U.S. Senate labor leaders, American Trucking Associations President Chris Spear expressed concern about the track record that Labor Secretary nominee Julie Su would bring to the job, specifically as it relates to the rights of truck drivers to be independent contractors. “California’s AB 5, which Ms. Su helped pass and implement as Secretary of the California Labor and Workforce Development Agency, essentially outlaws their business model,” Spear wrote in a letter to Sen. Bernie Sanders, (I-Vt.), chairman of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, and ranking member Bill Cassidy (R-La.). The letter was copied to members of the committee.
DOL Nominee Julie Su An Aggressive Enforcer, Inept Manager
March 8, 2023 // She was also a supporter of the state’s disastrous AB5 law, which was intended to force rideshare companies and other so-called gig economy businesses to treat their workers as regular employees rather than short-term workers. Su tweeted in 2019 that the law was “about preserving labor standards that are key to quality jobs in California.” There was little evidence the law wanted by or beneficial to rideshare drivers. Meanwhile numerous other traditional freelancing jobs were disrupted by the law, forcing state legislators to amend the bill to carve out many professions. Eventually state voters would pass Proposition 22 which exempted rideshare drivers from the law, stripping out the main thing its advocates wanted. The law contributed to California lagging behind the rest of the nation in jobs during the pandemic. Ironically, Su, should she be confirmed, will have another shot at it. The department already has a rulemaking in the works to go after employers for “worker misclassification” i.e., classifying them as freelancers rather than regular employees for whom the company must pay overtime and unemployment –a national version of AB5, with all the problems of that law.
Biden Taps Scandal-Plagued Official to Lead Labor Department
March 1, 2023 // As California's secretary of labor, Su oversaw billions of dollars in fraudulent payments through the state's unemployment system, the Washington Free Beacon reported. The extensive fraud, broken websites, and more than a million unprocessed claims in the California system led to bipartisan criticism in Su's 2021 Senate confirmation hearing. "California is not a model to emulate for the rest of the country," said then-senator Richard Burr (R., N.C.). "What's worse about the fraud committed on California and the U.S. taxpayer is that it was entirely preventable." The Senate narrowly approved Su's nomination in a 50-47 vote. Su’s appointment satisfies the Biden administration's need for diversity, the AP reported:
Ex-NYC mayor Bill de Blasio lobbying for Joe Biden to make him Labor secretary
February 10, 2023 // During de Blasio’s eight years as mayor, the Big Apple’s municipal workforce ballooned from 297,349 in June 2014 to a record high of 326,739 in June 2019. As of June 30, 2022 — six months after he left office — the number had declined to 304,095, due to a hiring freeze and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. De Blasio, 61, also struck deals with the city’s labor unions that included a retroactive pact that gave the nearly 100,000 members of District Council 37 annual raises of 2%, 2.25% and 3%. Keep up with today's most important news Stay up on the very latest with Evening Update. Enter your email address By clicking above you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. The combined effects of his actions pushed total payroll spending from $41 billion to $53.4 billion, a 30% increase.
Biden Proposal Could Lead to Employee Status for Gig Workers
October 11, 2022 // The proposal is intended as a so-called interpretive rule that doesn’t have the legal force of a regulation specifically authorized by Congress, and it applies only to laws that the department enforces, such as the federal minimum wage. States and other federal agencies, like the Internal Revenue Service, set their own criteria for employment status, and the rule would not directly affect what they decided about the status of gig workers. But many employers and regulators in other jurisdictions are likely to consider the department’s interpretation when making decisions about worker classification, and many judges are likely to use it as a guide. As a result, the proposal is a potential blow to gig companies and other service providers that argue their workers are contractors, though it would not immediately affect the status of those workers.
Rep. Virginia Foxx: NLRB’s Bad Behavior
July 18, 2022 // “By eviscerating the secret ballot, a hallmark of democratic elections, card check makes workers more vulnerable to harassment from union organizers. Don’t forget, a prominent union leader testified before the House Education and Labor Committee that unions need workers’ personal information to harass them ‘at the grocery store,’ or in their own home to pressure them into supporting the union. His admission tells you all you need to know about the political hackery of unions today. “The Biden-appointed NLRB General Counsel has also challenged longstanding precedent regarding employers’ right to educate their employees about the downsides of union representation. General Counsel Jennifer Abruzzo believes that such efforts are ‘at odds’ with the ‘fundamental labor laws’ of this country.
Congress thwarted Biden on unions. Or did it?
June 24, 2022 // “One of the biggest problems with this DOL is its obvious union favoritism,” the top Republican on the House Education and Labor Committee, Virginia Foxx (R-N.C.), said at a hearing this month. “This department has bowed low enough before union bosses to taste dirt. How many times has the Biden administration’s DOL kowtowed before union bosses instead of standing up for workers?” From installing former union official Marty Walsh as Labor secretary, to outfitting the National Labor Relations Board with union alums, to issuing a spate of union-friendly executive orders, the White House has taken significant steps toward expanding union membership despite the challenges presented by a narrowly divided Congress. Steve Rosenthal, Rep. Donald Norcross, Shane Larson, Communication Workers of America, Kate Bronfenbrenner, Doug Parker, Alice Stock, Lauren McFerran, Bobby Scott, Nick Niedzwiadek
Unions lobby Biden for bolder approach to student debt relief
June 8, 2022 // Labor organizations have already had some success in pushing Biden on student debt relief over the past year. Unions representing teachers, fire fighters, health care workers and government employees were a driving force behind the Education Department’s decision last year to use emergency powers to expand the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program.
Biden Labor Secretary Covered for Police Union That Enabled a Convicted Child Rapist
May 9, 2022 // The Monday conviction of Patrick Rose on 21 counts related to sexual assault of minors puts the spotlight on Walsh, who as Boston's mayor blocked records showing the city's police department knew about Rose's sexual crimes for decades. The records, which were released by Walsh's successor, are damaging to the city's powerful police union, which was led by the now-convicted child rapist during Walsh's tenure as mayor.
Bernie Sanders Announces Wasteful, Politicized Senate Budget Hearing
May 5, 2022 // In reality, this hearing is designed to paint a single company in a bad light and gin up momentum for the nascent Amazon Labor Union (ALU). By any fair measure, this hearing is outside the Budget Committee’s jurisdiction and is part of a government-wide effort to expand organized labor’s power at the expense of American workers.