Progressive Coalition Speaks Out as Big Business Moves to Crush Julie Su

As corporate interests continue to attack Julie Su, dozens of progressive organizations on Wednesday pressured a U.S. Senate panel to swiftly advance the labor secretary nominee, who "has devoted her life to fighting for workers' rights, holding exploitative employers accountable, leveling the playing field for high-road employers, and doing pioneering work to protect the most vulnerable of workers."

Labor and advocacy groups have celebrated since President Joe Biden nominated Su in February, but industries opposed to her are spending big in states like Arizona, Montana, and West Virginia, hoping some current and former Democrats in the Senate will block her confirmation.

"Julie Su's career has been defined by solving complex problems and building a more just economy for all."

"Why are corporations spending millions to defeat Julie Su's nomination as labor secretary? They know she's a champion of the working class and will take on the forces of corporate greed, illegal union-busters, and improve working conditions. The Senate must confirm her nomination," Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) tweeted Friday.

Sanders and Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.)—as chair and ranking member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP), respectively—received the new letter from 94 organizations ahead of the panel's Thursday hearing.

Led by the Economic Policy Institute (EPI) and National Employment Law Project (NELP), the groups wrote:

The Department of Labor's (DOL) basic mission is "to foster, promote, and develop the welfare of the wage earners, job seekers, and retirees of the United States; improve working conditions; advance opportunities for profitable employment; and assure work-related benefits and rights." Few people are as uniquely well-suited to lead the Department of Labor in executing this mission as Julie Su...

Over the past two years, Deputy Secretary Su has proven herself to be an indispensable partner to Secretary Marty Walsh. Her recent experience and proven track record as a leader at the Department of Labor will enable a smooth leadership transition for the agency and a continuation of the agenda they both charted, one that will better protect workers from exploitation, but one that also has due regard for the regulated community and employers who are playing by the rules. Indeed, that is why Deputy Secretary Su is so well respected by so many in the business community in her home state of California, because she is someone who respects all stakeholders, including high-road employers who understand that their success is built by and with their workforces.

"This is a critical time for the Department of Labor to continue supporting workers through the economic recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic," the letter stresses, pointing to the DOL's work to finalize independent contractors rules, modernize unemployment insurance, carry out new interagency initiatives, improve access to well-paying employment, and implement the Good Jobs Initiative and items from the White House Task Force on Worker Organizing and Empowerment.

The letter highlights Su's "deep experience addressing the particular needs of low-wage workers" as well as her "pioneering work for the labor and human rights of immigrant workers," and argues that her former job in California "left her well-positioned to manage the relationship between the U.S. DOL and their numerous state-level counterparts."

\u201cJulie Su has devoted her life to fighting for workers\u2019 rights.\n\nToday EPI, along with @NelpNews and other state and local organizations, sent a letter urging members of the Senate HELP Committee to advance the confirmation of Julie Su as Labor Secretary. https://t.co/x1AHHysRZ9\u201d

— Economic Policy Institute (@Economic Policy Institute) 1681920349

As NELP executive director Rebecca Dixon said Wednesday, "Even before coming to Washington—from her experience as a civil rights lawyer to her work as secretary of the California Labor and Workforce Development Agency—Julie Su's career has been defined by solving complex problems and building a more just economy for all."

"Now, having served as deputy secretary at the Department of Labor for over two years and using her decades of experience to have a profound impact at the national level, we urge a swift confirmation process so that she and the Department of Labor can continue to make progress on the key labor, workforce, and employment issues facing our country today," Dixon added.

EPI president Heidi Shierholz also advocated for urgent action by lawmakers, saying: "Workers in this country need an experienced leader and brilliant public servant at the helm of the Department of Labor, and Julie Su is exactly that. I encourage the U.S. Senate to act quickly on her nomination to ensure that the Department of Labor can continue its ongoing work to support the economic recovery and address issues important to working people."

Other groups that signed on to the letter include the AFL-CIO, AFSCME, Casa Latina, Child Labor Coalition, Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights, Communications Workers of America, National Black Worker Center, Our Revolution, Oxfam America, Sierra Club, Service Employees International Union, United Steelworkers, and Women's Law Project.

\u201c\ud83c\udf8910 THOUSAND of you have joined us to tell Congress to #StandWithSu & confirm Julie Su as @USDOL Secretary of Labor! \ud83c\udf89\n\nLet's get to 15k! SIGN NOW \u27a1\ufe0fhttps://t.co/hoK2JrwF08\u2b05\ufe0f\u201d

— AFL-CIO #PassThePROAct (@AFL-CIO #PassThePROAct) 1681914325

Citing unnamed sources, Punchbowl also reported that "union officials will begin a six-figure TV ad buy" supporting Su in Washington, D.C. as well as Arizona and other states, and that more spending would follow.

Some unions have individually pressured the Senate on Su's nomination—including the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, whose general president, Sean O'Brien, argued in a letter last week that she is "uniquely qualified" and "would make an extremely effective leader" at the DOL.

United Farm Workers president Teresa Romero similarly said in a Tuesday letter to Sanders and Cassidy that "few nominees in U.S. history have been as qualified" for the role as Su, who "has shown a lifelong commitment to upholding worker's rights as well as working with employers to keep our economy strong and working for everyone."