Mar 1, 2023

Biden Praises Julie Su on Workers’ Rights, High-Growth Industries

Jordan Fabian and Jennifer Jacobs, Bloomberg News

US President Joe Biden speaks during a nomination event with Julie Su, deputy US secretary of labor, left, in the East Room of the White House in Washington, DC, US, on Wednesday, March 1, 2023. If confirmed to serve as the secretary of labor, Su would increase the number of women serving in Biden's cabinet and is expected to lead the Department of Labor on an acting basis until the Senate takes up her nomination. Photographer: Al Drago/Bloomberg , Bloomberg

(Bloomberg) -- President Joe Biden said Julie Su, his nominee to be the next labor secretary, would work to protect the rights of low-wage workers and boost high-growth industries like semiconductor manufacturing, broadband, and health care if confirmed by the Senate.

“Julie is the American dream,” Biden said Wednesday during a White House ceremony to introduce her nomination. “I think even more importantly, she’s committed to making sure that dream is in the reach of every American.”

Biden on Tuesday tapped Su, the deputy labor secretary and former California labor department chief, to replace the departing Marty Walsh, moving to fill the first cabinet vacancy of his presidency.

Read More: Biden Nominates Julie Su as Labor Secretary, Replacing Walsh

If confirmed by the Senate, Su would become the first Asian American to serve as a cabinet secretary in the Biden administration and increase the number of women leading federal agencies. She is expected serve as acting labor secretary until the Senate takes up her nomination.

Su, 54, is seen as an ally of organized labor and progressives. She worked for nearly two decades as a civil-rights attorney advocating for worker protections before entering state government. At the Labor Department, she was involved in an effort to avert a freight rail shutdown and has focused on job training, improving worker pay and curbing employer harassment.

“Sixty years ago, my mom came to the United States on a cargo ship because she couldn’t afford a passenger ticket. Recently, she got a call from the president of the United States, telling her that her daughter was going to be nominated to be the US Labor Secretary,” Su said. “So, I believe in the transformative power of America, and I know the transformative power of a good job.”

She is expected to face opposition from Senate Republicans, who have criticized her work as deputy labor secretary, including on a regulation that would make it easier for gig workers to be classified as employees eligible for minimum wage and benefits.

Earlier: Labor Secretary Marty Walsh to Exit Biden Administration

But Su has strong support from some prominent Democrats in the Senate - particularly those eager to see an Asian American appointed to Biden’s cabinet. The president acknowledged he had been lobbied on the appointment by Senator Tammy Duckworth, an Illinois Democrat, who was in the front row at Wednesday’s event.

“I want you to know your strongest, most intimidating supporter is right there, the distinguished senator,” Biden told Su.

If confirmed, Su would take over the department during a period of heightened interest in labor organizing at well-known companies, such as Amazon.com Inc. and Starbucks Corp., even as the share of US workers who belong to a union last year fell to a record low.

Biden, who has vowed to be the most pro-union president in US history, could turn to Su to find ways to encourage workers to organize. She will also face other challenges, including a months-long contract negotiation between unions and port operators on the West Coast that carries major implications for US supply chains.

Walsh, the former Boston mayor and union official, announced in February he would leave his post to become executive director of the National Hockey League players’ union.

--With assistance from Justin Sink.