Dear Representative:
As you consider the FY2025 Homeland Security Appropriations Bill (H.R.8752) scheduled for consideration this week, the AFL-CIO would like to highlight a few troubling amendments that have been made in order.
We urge you to oppose Part C Rosendale/Mace amendment #53 that would prohibit funding to be used to carry out the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) memorandum titled ‘Worksite Enforcement: The Strategy to Protect the American Labor Market, the Conditions of the American Worksite, and the Dignity of the Individual.’’ The DHS worksite enforcement memo aims to support effective enforcement of wage protections, workplace safety, labor rights, and other laws and standards that protect every worker in this country. The enforcement strategies outlined in this memo are key to reigning in rampant wage theft, preventing needless workplace fatalities and combating the shameful resurgence of child labor in the 21st century. The practical effect of this amendment would be to allow unscrupulous employers to violate workers’ rights with impunity.
In addition, we urge you to oppose Part C Tiffany amendments #58 and #59 which would prohibit the use of funds to extend Temporary Protected Status (TPS) to any national of El Salvador and Honduras, respectively. These amendments will strip rights and status away from hundreds of thousands of long-term members of our workforce, our communities and our unions, causing significant disruption to industries such as hospitality, food processing and construction. TPS is a pro-worker policy tool that provides significant benefits to working families at home and abroad. Country determinations should continue to be made through the process outlined by statute, not through politicized riders.
The AFL-CIO urges you to oppose these amendments and any other amendments that attack workers’ rights or roll back desperately needed worker protections.
Sincerely,
Jody Calemine
Director, Government Affairs