Senate Confirms Jennifer Abruzzo as NLRB General Counsel

Senate votes to confirm Jennifer Abruzzo by a vote of 51-50

Senator Murray: “Jennifer Abruzzo is the type of dedicated public servant who will make sure the NLRB is enforcing the law and protecting the rights of workers, and I urge all my colleagues to join me in voting to discharge her nomination and confirm her as General Counsel of the NLRB.”

***WATCH SENATOR MURRAY’S OPENING REMARKS HERE***

(Washington, D.C.) – Today, the Senate voted to confirm Jennifer Abruzzo to serve as General Counsel of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) by a vote of 51-50. In remarks on the Senate floor, Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, emphasized her strong support for Ms. Abruzzo, who has a long record defending workers from unfair treatment. Senator Murray also highlighted that a fully-staffed National Labor Relations Board is needed to protect workers’ rights to organize, and help build back an economy that’s stronger, fairer, and works for everyone.

“Jennifer Abruzzo is the type of dedicated public servant who will make sure the NLRB is enforcing the law and protecting the rights of workers, and I urge all my colleagues to join me in voting to discharge her nomination and confirm her as General Counsel of the NLRB,” said Senator Murray during floor remarks.

In her remarks, Senator Murray noted that after years of unprecedented Republican obstruction of NLRB nominees—which tipped the scales of justice against workers and toward big corporations—workers deserve an NLRB committed to protecting their rights. Senator Murray highlighted that Ms. Abruzzo’s decades long experience in public service and her extensive track-record defending workers, make clear that she would work diligently at the NLRB to enforce the law and protect workers’ rights.

Senator Murray continued, “Working families simply cannot afford an NLRB that fails to protect workers’ rights when they are threatened so we’ve got to confirm nominees like Jennifer Abruzzo who will protect workers’ rights and ensure their voices are heard. If we’re serious about building back a stronger, fairer economy, if we’re serious about standing with working families, then we need to confirm Jennifer Abruzzo as General Counsel of the NLRB.”

Senator Murray’s full remarks, as prepared for delivery, are below:

“Thank you M. President.

“This pandemic has made it clearer than ever: our economy is working great for those at the very top—but not for workers.

“Saturday marks the 12th anniversary of the last time we raised our federal minimum wage.

“That’s absolutely unacceptable—and our workers deserve better.

“No one working 40 hours a week should be making wages so low that their family is living in poverty and they can’t afford to pay for even their most basic needs. 

“It’s past time that we finally give workers—who are the backbone of our economy, and have kept us going through this pandemic—a hard earned, and much deserved raise.

“And another important step the Senate can take to build back an economy that’s stronger, fairer, and works for everyone, is ensure agencies like the National Labor Relations Board work effectively and protect workers’ rights.

“Jennifer Abruzzo is the type of dedicated public servant who will make sure the NLRB is enforcing the law and protecting the rights of workers, and I urge all my colleagues to join me in voting to confirm her as General Counsel of the NLRB.

“She has dedicated her career to upholding the law and protecting workers from unfair treatment, she has won victories against companies that attempted to undermine workers’ right to organize and call for better wages, and she has 23 years of experience at the NLRB, including her time serving as Acting General Counsel—the role she is nominated to fill now.

“It’s clear that she’s got the right experience, qualifications, and values for the job and we need her to be able to get to work right away.

“Because we have seen years of unprecedented Republican obstruction of NLRB nominees.

“There has been an empty Democratic seat on the NLRB for nearly three years and there wasn’t a single Democrat on the board from late 2019 until mid-2020.

“This obstruction tipped the scales of justice in favor of big corporations and workers have suffered the consequences.

“When workers stand together to form a union, it’s the NLRB that ensures the election is fair.

“If a worker is fired or unfairly punished because they want to join or form a union, the NLRB is tasked with protecting their rights.

“And if companies refuse to negotiate fairly with unions fighting for higher wages, better benefits, a secure retirement, and safer worker conditions, it’s the NLRB that protects unions and union workers who have helped build our country’s middle class.

‘Working families simply cannot afford an NLRB that fails to protect workers’ rights when they are threatened, so we’ve got to confirm nominees like Jennifer Abruzzo who will protect workers’ rights and ensure their voices are heard.

“If we’re serious about building back a stronger, fairer economy, if we’re serious about standing with working families, then we need to confirm Jennifer Abruzzo as General Counsel of the NLRB and then get to work increasing our federal minimum wage.

“Thank you M. President and I yield the floor.”

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