CHARLESTON – In the Mountain State, we like to do things differently and not have the same political fights and divides they have in Washington D.C.
We know that businesses – especially small businesses – drive our economy and create jobs. And we also know that unions and collective bargaining help make a job a good job that pays enough to support your family and save something for retirement.
Julie Su is the right choice for Secretary of Labor because she understands the importance of both business and labor, and that is why she has the support of everyone from the United Mine Workers to more than 250 business leaders.
Humphreys
Julie understands the needs of small businesses deeply because it’s something she grew up with everyday as she explained at her confirmation hearing.
“My family also saw opportunity and their shot at the middle class in the form of small businesses," she said. "They owned a dry cleaning and laundromat business and then a franchise pizza restaurant. My dad would work his day job and then head right to the pizza shop, returning home after 10 pm.”
Before Julie Su served as Deputy Secretary of Labor in partnership with Marty Walsh, she worked with the California Business community – the largest economy in the United States and fourth largest in the world – to create quality jobs.
Julie is eminently qualified to become the Secretary of Labor where she will continue her record of working with companies of all sizes, being accessible to the business community, and a convener where everyone has a seat at the table and a say in the discussion.
Julie has worked with businesses of all sizes on the Future of Work Commission, helping to avert a national rail strike, and addressing the port and supply train crisis during COVID. She has a strong commitment to quality job creation, and a deep appreciation for the necessity of a robust business sector to enable them.
Julie continued her work with the business community while at the Department of Labor together with Marty Walsh. Through its Inclusive Capitalism work, DOL has proactively engaged small business stakeholders, particularly regarding retirement, paid family and medical leave, and other benefits that small employers historically struggle to provide.
Julie Su approaches her work with fidelity to the law, the legal system, and the limits put in place by the legislature and the courts.
She is a labor lawyer who has gone to court with workers as clients, overseen the enforcement of the law by agencies, and advised the legislature when asked for assistance. She understands and respects the law — the protections it offers and the limitations it places. She knows that Congress passes laws, the courts interpret them, and she is bound by both.
Julie Su’s deference to the law as enacted by Congress and interpreted by the courts is reflected in DOL’s rule making process defining employee and independent contractor status under federal labor law. Though some have called for DOL to adopt the “ABC test” for employment status via regulation, the NRPM states explicitly and absolutely that DOL does NOT have the authority to implement an ABC Test under the FLSA.
There will be times when the business community and the Labor Department will disagree. But all of the business leaders supporting Julie Su know that she is eminently qualified to be Secretary of Labor, her door will always be open to the business community, and there will be many areas where they can work collaboratively together to help companies and workers.
It is unfortunate that special interests and people in D.C. are trying to use this confirmation to fight the same old political battles and to divide people along partisan lines and business versus labor.
In West Virginia, we proudly support unions and businesses because our economy doesn’t work for everyone without both.
Julie Su grew up living that same experience and worked hand in hand with Marty Walsh at the Department of Labor to help working families and businesses thrive.
I hope that the Senate will swiftly confirm Julie so she can continue this important work.
Humphrey, an attorney, is the founding member of James F. Humphreys & Associates.
