The Honorable Patty Murray, Chairwoman
The Honorable Richard Burr, Ranking Member
U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions
Washington, D.C. 20510
Dear Chairwoman Murray and Ranking Member Burr:
On behalf of the 12.5 million members and 55 unions of the AFL-CIO, I strongly urge you to support the nomination of Mayor Marty Walsh to be the 29th U.S. secretary of labor. If confirmed, Mayor Walsh will be the first union member to serve as labor secretary in more than 40 years.
Walsh was elected mayor of Boston in 2013 after serving nearly two decades in the Massachusetts House of Representatives. He was a leader in the fight to raise the state minimum wage to $15 an hour, while at the same time creating 135,000 new jobs. In the face of the COVID-19 public health crisis, he created the Boston Resiliency Fund, raising over $30 million to help laid-off workers gain employment by delivering food to the most vulnerable families and cleaning community spaces that were being used to shelter the homeless. He also negotiated directly with local banks to stop evictions.
Marty Walsh’s life is one of personal struggle and triumph on behalf of working people. He has fought racism and sexism all his life and, as mayor, worked with immigrants, communities of color and the working poor to make Boston a better city for everyone.
Most importantly, Mayor Walsh knows that collective bargaining is essential to building a stronger economy, combating inequality, beating back COVID-19 and expanding opportunities for women, immigrants and people of color. Mayor Walsh will have the confidence and support of the labor movement as we work together to create a stronger, fairer America.
From the Boston Building and Construction Trades Council to the Massachusetts State House to the Mayor’s office, Marty Walsh has been a fighter who understands the power of working people standing together for a better life.
It will take an unprecedented effort from President Biden and the Labor Department to recover from the failed policies of the past four years, which have harmed working people and our families. We can’t think of anyone who is better suited and better prepared to meet this challenge than Mayor Marty Walsh, and we urge you to vote for his confirmation.
Sincerely,
Richard L. Trumka
President, AFL-CIO