Working families want a labor department that works
The Labor Secretary is not just another Cabinet member. His or her actions directly impact our pay, safety and rights on the job.
That鈥檚 why we were proud to beat back the nomination of Andy Puzder, and why we鈥檙e committed to closely scrutinizing his replacement, Alexander Acosta.
Puzder embodied the broken rules of our economy. As CEO of CKE, the parent company of Carl鈥檚 Jr. and Hardee鈥檚, he showed a callous disregard for the welfare of workers and a shocking ignorance of the Department of Labor鈥檚 important mission.
So working people mobilized against his nomination from the get-go. We rallied in towns and cities across the country, flooded Senate offices with calls and e-mails and highlighted Puzder鈥檚 terrible track record. It worked.
Puzder claims a 鈥渢sunami of fake news鈥� derailed his nomination. But it was the truth that forced him to withdraw.
The demise of Puzder鈥檚 nomination was not a win for workers in and of itself. The real test was whether President Trump would listen to us and replace him with someone more suitable.
We鈥檒l wait for confirmation hearings before coming to a conclusion, but Acosta鈥檚 nomination deserves serious consideration. Instead of a fast-food CEO who routinely violates labor laws, we can now evaluate a public servant with experience enforcing it.
That鈥檚 progress.
However, our level of scrutiny remains the same. Working people will review Acosta鈥檚 record as thoroughly as we did the previous nominee鈥檚.
He will have to answer the tough questions and explain how he will enforce and uphold labor laws to benefit working people and not further tilt the balance of power toward corporate CEOs.
The Department of Labor took important steps forward under President Obama, recovering nearly $1.6 billion in stolen wages, cracking down on unlawful employers, adding new workplace protections and ensuring retirement advice is in the best interest of the client, not the advisor.
In real life terms, this means working people have more money in our pockets, more safety and dignity on the job and more security in retirement.
These are all key components of the American Dream.
Puzder was an unmistakable threat to this progress. We鈥檙e waiting to see if Acosta鈥檚 nomination can offer the potential for something better.
As always, the devil will be in the details. So we look forward to hearing more about Acosta鈥檚 vision for the Labor Department and all workers during his upcoming confirmation hearing.
Richard Trumka is president of the AFL-CIO, America鈥檚 labor federation. He comes from a small coal-mining town in southwest Pennsylvania.