AFT’s Weingarten on Nomination of Julie Su as Labor Secretary

WASHINGTON—American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten issued the following statement after the Biden administration nominated Julie Su to head the Department of Labor:

“Julie Su has been lifelong champion for workers’ rights—including their right to join together in a union. She will hit the ground running after 18 hugely productive months as deputy secretary, where she’s led a crackdown on wage theft, traveled the country to hear workers’ stories, and helped promote and institute the administration’s historic remaking of our economy from the bottom up and middle out.

“Joe Biden has led the most pro-worker administration since Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Su has been at the center of that effort. She is committed to the idea that the economy should work for all, not just the wealthy few.

“Su has already run a labor department in California, where she fought to protect trafficked workers and boost the minimum wage. She has the drive and leadership skills to continue the work of Secretary Marty Walsh and to implement the Biden agenda to create new pathways for our youth and millions more good jobs in sectors like semiconductor manufacturing, broadband and healthcare. Additionally, Su would be a voice for the Asian American and Pacific Islander community in the Cabinet, and I urge the Senate to confirm her at the earliest opportunity.”