May 1, 2023

AFL-CIO Mobilizes to Support Julie Su for Secretary of Labor

The AFL-CIO unveiled a multifaceted “Stand with Su” campaign April 21 in support of acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su’s nomination to lead the Department of Labor. The campaign includes a nationwide worker mobilization to call and email senators urging them to vote in support of Su.

In coordination with Su’s hearing before the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee on April 20, the AFL-CIO and union and community-based partners began an all-out blitz to ensure Su’s record of supporting working people and increasing opportunity for all is front and center as senators consider her confirmation.
Su’s storied career, which began as a young civil rights attorney who won $4 million for trafficked and exploited Thai garment workers, uniquely qualifies her to provide the critical leadership and innovative strategies needed for the Labor Department to effectively tackle the challenges workers and employers face in today’s economy.

“Julie Su is one of the most accomplished, hardworking and brilliant nominees this nation has ever seen for secretary of labor,” said AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler. “Julie is relentless in pursuing justice for working people, especially those on the margins who are routinely subject to exploitation and abuse. Her deep understanding of the future of work, the benefits and challenges of technological advancement in the workplace, and the essential role job training plays in creating an economy that works for all is exactly what our country needs to prepare future generations for rewarding careers. The AFL-CIO and our allies will fight tooth and nail to ensure Julie is confirmed because she’s the right person at the right time to move our nation’s workforce forward.”

As deputy secretary of labor, Su partnered with Secretary Marty Walsh on groundbreaking initiatives to fight workplace discrimination, bring more opportunities to women workers and build a thriving workforce for generations through job training and investment in burgeoning sectors like semiconductor manufacturing, clean energy and the care economy. Su’s been widely praised for her efforts to combat wage theft, winning millions of dollars for workers who had their pay stolen by unscrupulous bosses in California. She also has a long history of collaborating with employers and unions to build innovative partnerships to boost the economy and create good jobs that benefit workers and companies. And most importantly, she’s never backed down from a fight when workers’ fundamental rights are on the line.

“Julie Su has provided her valuable support and leadership to make real changes in the industry, especially for garment workers who are often mistreated and have endured for decades—often in really bad work conditions at sweatshops,” said Francisco Tzul, a Los Angeles garment worker.

A statement from the White House noted that as the Secretary of the California Department of Labor, Julie Su “led the largest state labor department in the nation, cracked down on wage theft, fought to protect trafficked workers, increased the minimum wage, created good-paying, high-quality jobs, and established and enforced workplace safety standards.”

The advocacy group UltraViolet Action noted that “Women make up 52 percent of all essential workers, and most often, those are women of color. And yet, Black women are paid just 64 cents for every dollar a white man makes–and the pandemic only made things harder. These workers desperately need a champion running the Labor Department, and Julie Su is that champion. As head of the largest state labor department in the nation, she revived labor law enforcement and launched an innovative, multilingual ‘Wage Theft Is a Crime’ campaign to educate low-wage workers and help them fight back against employers who violate their rights.”

A statement from the California Labor Federation noted that, “If you are a union activist in California, we don’t need to tell you how great Julie Su is. We know first hand that there is no one more qualified to be President Biden’s Labor Secretary. But her clear pro-worker values, effectiveness and tenacity are making her a target of corporate backlash. Uber, Lyft, Amazon and others are funding a campaign to try to stall her confirmation. We may not have their money, but we can use our people power.”

“Julie Su’s testimony before the Senate HELP Committee reinforced what the labor movement has always known: Su has the necessary experience, values and leadership qualities to be our secretary of labor,” said Shuler. “Her record of standing up for working people and marginalized communities is stellar and unimpeachable. She is the right person for the job. We call on the U.S. Senate to swiftly vote to confirm Julie Su.”

Take Action to Support Julie Su, a Labor Secretary Workers Deserve

Affirming his commitment to prioritizing the interest of working families, President Biden has nominated Julie Su, a proven defender of workers’ rights, to serve as the next Secretary of Labor. Su has a long record of standing with workers and a deep understanding of the issues we face. From her beginnings protecting immigrants and other vulnerable workers, to fiercely combating wage theft and the abuse of low-wage workers in California, to her leadership of the Department of Labor with then-Secretary Marty Walsh, Su has distinguished herself as a principled fighter for the basic rights of every worker. She is the most qualified candidate to be Secretary of Labor and the best choice to advance the agenda for an inclusive economy.

Unfortunately, corporate lobbyists and wealthy special interests are spending big to block Su’s confirmation. Right-wing Republicans and their Fox News allies have launched a wave of vicious sexist and racist attacks in an all-out attempt to block her confirmation. Conservative Democrat Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema have stated that they are undecided whether they will vote for her.

To add your name to the petition to show you support Julie Su, go to https://afl-cio.org.