The Senate Labor Committee will vote again Tuesday on whether to move forward with Julie Su's nomination to lead the Labor Department, though it's unclear if anything has changed since her candidacy for the job languished last year amid fierce opposition. Republican and a handful of Democrats who are resisting.
Su, who previously served as California's labor chief, was nominated by President Biden a year ago and has served as acting secretary since March. Three undecided Democrats plus Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.) delayed a full Senate confirmation, which needed nearly unanimous support from Senate Democrats to pass.
Without a final floor vote, Su's nomination was returned to the White House late last year.
Republicans have described Su's policies as pro-union and anti-business. They especially took issue with Assembly Bill 5, the California law that requires companies to classify most workers as employees rather than independent contractors. Su did not draft the bill, but provided technical assistance at the end of the process.
Democrats said she is highly qualified for the position and has made groundbreaking progress in protecting workers' rights. They say Su, a progressive Californian, has become caught up in Washington's political divide.
The Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee initially voted to bring forward Su's nomination for labor secretary in April. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont), chairman of the panel, said he strongly supports her reappointment.
“She has been an excellent deputy secretary of labor, an excellent acting secretary of labor, and I believe she will be an excellent secretary of labor,” Sanders wrote in a statement. “Her strong record on behalf of workers and her tireless dedication to working families across this country show without a doubt that she is the right person for the job. I urge my colleagues to support her nomination.”
This month, Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.), the committee's ranking member, urged Sanders to hold a new nomination hearing before scheduling another vote.
Cassidy took issue with what she called her “troubling record” as acting Labor secretary, including the department's final rule establishing guidelines for classifying workers as employees or independent contractors; a proposed rule to expand eligibility for overtime pay; and a proposed rule allowing union leaders to participate in workplace inspections.
“It has been almost a year since Ms. Su's nomination hearing. It is important that we examine the many issues that have arisen since then and get an explanation for those serious concerns,” Cassidy said during a speech on the Senate floor Monday night, criticizing Sanders' decision not to hold another public hearing. “No one is above responsibility, especially an unconfirmed but incumbent Cabinet-level candidate with massive influence over our nation's economy.”
Last year, a backlog of cases at the Department of Labor caused frustrating months-long delays for employers and immigrants seeking to obtain H-2B visas for seasonal non-agricultural work. Cassidy blamed Su for the agency's mismanagement.
He also noted that the New York Times reported that federal officials repeatedly ignored warnings that immigrant children were increasingly working in slaughterhouses, factories and on rooftops, in violation of child labor laws.
The Labor Department responded that its inspectors had found thousands of violations, and Su said the administration was “leaving no stone unturned to eradicate exploitative child labor.”
The Labor Department's independent watchdog launched an audit in August into how officials responded to rising child labor violations.
After Biden took office, the Senate voted along party lines to confirm Su as deputy secretary of labor. Before that, he spent seven years directing California's Division of Labor Standards Enforcement.
In 2021, the California Employment Development Department reported $20 billion in fraudulent unemployment claims. Supporters of hers said she inherited many problems when she took over the department and noted that employment fraud increased across the country during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Once Su's nomination comes out of committee, his supporters could restart efforts to convince holdout Democrats to bring his confirmation to the Senate floor for a full vote.
