Statement by AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka on nominees to the National Labor Relations Board who will testify before the Senate HELP Committee on Thursday, July 13, 2017:
President Trump has chosen two nominees for the National Labor Relations Board whose track records raise serious concerns about their commitment to the rights and protections guaranteed by our labor laws and enforced by the NLRB. Marvin Kaplan has never practiced labor law, and his experience comes from crafting legislation for politicians to rig the rules against working people. William Emanuel has a long record of practicing labor law on behalf of employers, most recently at one of the most infamous union-busting law firms in the country. On their face, the résumés of both nominees appear to be in direct conflict with the mission of the NLRB.
The decisions and actions of the NLRB have real consequences for working people. A fair and functioning NLRB can protect the freedom of working people to negotiate a fair return on our work so we can provide for our families. A partisan, ideologically driven NLRB can further empower corporations and CEOs to take away our freedoms at work. For these reasons, it is critical that senators closely scrutinize both nominees and ask the tough questions that will root out possible conflicts of interest and show whether they have the experience, temperament and fairness required of nominees to these important jobs. The stakes for working families are too high for them not to.
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