After Republican Senator Blocks Equal Employment Opportunity Commission Nominee, Murray Vows to Keep Fighting
For many of the women and men who came forward to share stories of sexual harassment or assault in the workplace, the EEOC is one of the few places they can turn
Because one Republican Senator blocked the nomination of Chai Feldblum, the EEOC will likely lack a quorum next year
Murray also called for the Senate to confirm Mark Pearce to the National Labor Relations Board
Murray: “In this moment, when sexual assault and harassment in the workplace is at the forefront of our national conversation—this is the wrong message to send to American workers and their employers”
Murray: “If Ms. Feldblum’s nomination is blocked this Congress—it would be an unprecedented power grab by the majority that would permanently shift the balance of power of the Senate”
**Watch Senator Murray’s floor speech HERE**
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), ranking member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, delivered a floor speech urging a lone Republican Senate to drop his obstruction to Chai Feldblum’s nomination to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Over the past year, millions of women and men have bravely come forward to share their stories of sexual harassment and assault in the workplace, and Senator Murray urged the Senate to confirm Ms. Feldblum to show workers across the country that Congress is taking the issue seriously.
In response to the rejection of her request to confirm Ms. Feldblum, and the possible lack of a quorum on the EEOC next Congress, Senator Murray released the following statement:
“Just because one Republican refused to allow the EEOC to continue some of its most important work protecting workers’ civil rights on the job does not mean that this is over. I want every worker who has bravely come forward with a story of sexual harassment or assault in the workplace to know that I will not stop fighting until the EEOC is able to fully protect workers’ civil rights.”
The EEOC is responsible for enforcing civil rights laws for workers, holds employers and businesses accountable for discrimination and harassment, and is a resource for workers who need to file complaints if they are being treated unfairly at work. Ms. Feldblum is highly qualified and highly respected, and if her nomination is blocked this Congress, the EEOC—an agency workers rely on to protect their rights and safety on the job—will lack a quorum and won’t be able to do some of its critical work.
Senator Murray also urged the Senate to confirm Mark Pearce to the National Labor Relations Board.
“Mr. Pearce is extremely qualified and has a long track record of serving his country for eight years as a Member of the Board,” said Senator Murray. “He has a distinguished background representing unions and workers, and right now—when the Republican Board members are rushing decisions that chip away at workers’ rights—even violating ethics pledges to do so, it is clear the Board could benefit from his knowledge, expertise and voice for workers.”
Key excerpts of Senator Murray’s floor speech:
“In this moment, when sexual assault and harassment in the workplace is at the forefront our national conversation—this is the wrong message to send to American workers and their employers. We need to prove to the millions of women and men that we are taking the epidemic of harassment in the workplace seriously.”
“If one Republican senator insists on blocking Ms. Feldblum’s nomination, the work of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission—an agency workers rely on to protect their rights and safety on the job—would come to a grinding halt. M. President—over the past two years, we have seen a shift in this country toward acknowledging and taking action against sexual assault and harassment—especially in the workplace. For far too long—this epidemic of powerful men taking advantage of their subordinates, employees, or those without a voice—was swept under the rug. And women and men were told to brush it off, to have a sense of humor, or to just endure the harassment or abuse they were facing at the workplace… And many did—because they knew they would be punished, retaliated against, or even fired.”
“But after the presidential election—and the Women’s March—when so many women and men around the country made their voices heard and fight back against misogyny, sexism, racism, and the tilted playing field that has favored those at the top for too long. We started to see women and men bravely come forward—at a level we’ve never seen before to say ‘no more’ and speak out against their experiences of sexual assault and harassment in the workplace. And because of that courage, a lot of powerful men in Hollywood, the media, and Congress have finally been held accountable for their actions—especially when it came to using their power to take advantage of younger or less powerful women and men. But for women and men in industries outside the spotlight in hospitality, in technology, in farm fields, and so many offices and workplaces around the country—there has not been the same kind of reckoning. And for many of those workers, the EEOC is one of the few places they can turn.
Watch Senator Murray’s floor speech here.
Full text of Senator Murray’s floor speech:
Thank you M. President.
I come to the floor today to raise concerns about the unprecedented and partisan obstruction of a highly-qualified nominee to a critical agency.
This is country, it is illegal is discriminate against someone in the workplace because of the traits that make them who they are—their race, religion, sex, disability, and more.
And it is the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s responsibility to enforce those laws and give every person the opportunity to make a living for themselves without fear of discrimination or harassment.
But right now, a single Republican Senator is threatening to derail the confirmation of Chai Feldblum for another term on the EEOC.
Ms. Feldblum has served two terms on the EEOC where she earned the respect of her professional colleagues on both sides of the aisle…
She has strong support from Republicans and Democrats in the Senate…
And—she has been confirmed by the Senate twice.
M. President, when it comes to independent boards and commissions—including the EEOC…
...the Senate has a longstanding practice of pairing nominees—one from the majority Party and one from the minority Party.
This is so important.
Because it allows the minority Party the opportunity to have a voice…
…and in this case—allows my Democratic colleagues and I to ensure employers are held accountable for workers’ rights and safety on the job.
This practice is also important to bipartisanship in the Senate.
And a part of that longstanding practice is that the majority cannot railroad the nomination of a well-respected and well-qualified individual chosen by the minority…
If Ms. Feldblum’s nomination is blocked this Congress—it would be an unprecedented power grab by the majority that would permanently shift the balance of power of the Senate.
I hope all of my colleagues take seriously what it would mean if yet another power of the minority in the Senate was taken away.
But most importantly…
If one Republican senator insists on blocking Ms. Feldblum’s nomination…
…the work of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission—an agency workers rely on to protect their rights and safety on the job—would come to a grinding halt.
M. President—over the past two years, we have seen a shift in this country toward acknowledging and taking action against sexual assault and harassment—especially in the workplace.
For far too long—this epidemic of powerful men taking advantage of their subordinates, employees, or those without a voice—was swept under the rug.
And women and men were told to brush it off, to have a sense of humor, or to just endure the harassment or abuse they were facing at the workplace…
And many did—because they knew they would be punished, retaliated against, or even fired.
But after the presidential election—and the Women’s March—when so many women and men around the country made their voices heard and fight back against misogyny, sexism, racism, and the tilted playing field that has favored those at the top for too long…
We started to see women and men bravely come forward—at a level we’ve never seen before to say ‘no more’ and speak out against their experiences of sexual assault and harassment in the workplace.
And because of that courage, a lot of powerful men in Hollywood, the media, and Congress have finally been held accountable for their actions—especially when it came to using their power to take advantage of younger or less powerful women and men.
But for women and men in industries outside the spotlight in hospitality, in technology, in farm fields, and so many offices and workplaces around the country…
There has not been the same kind of reckoning—and for many of those workers, the EEOC is one of the few places they can turn.
The EEOC is a resource for workers who need to file complaints of harassment or discrimination…
It holds employers and businesses accountable for widespread discrimination and harassment.
But again, M. President—because of the objection of a single Republican Senator—it is possible that the EEOC will be unable to conduct some of it most critical work.
Here’s what that means for workers around the country:
The EEOC would no longer be able to bring some large cases—when discrimination is a part of employers’ general operating standards.
This often includes hiring practices, equal pay, or sexual harassment…
…and it means that workers won’t be able to file complaints to stop what happened to them from happening to anyone else.
The EEOC would not be able to rule in cases where the Commission has not previously taken a position and a new policy must be created…
And regional EEOC offices would not be able to hire expert witnesses in some instances—meaning many cases would be stalled or punted.
This isn’t hypothetical.
Without a quorum—the EEOC wouldn’t have been able to participate in the 2016 case against a tire company that refused to hire women for field positions.
But after the EEOC intervened, that company settled with 46 women and implemented safeguards to prevent further discrimination.
The EEOC also wouldn’t have been able to participate in a case against the outdoor store that discriminated against African American and Hispanic workers in its hiring practices and retaliated against workers who stood up against unlawful practices.
Workers around the country rely on the EEOC every day to intervene when they are being harassed, discriminated against, or unfairly treated at work.
Whether they’re being told they must work on their day of religious observance…
Or being told they cannot do a certain job because of their sex…
The EEOC is there for them.
And in this moment—when sexual assault and harassment in the workplace is at the forefront our national conversation…
This is the wrong message to send to American workers and their employers.
We need to prove to the millions of women and men that we are taking the epidemic of harassment in the workplace seriously.
M. President, I’ve spoken to many of my colleagues—on both sides of the aisle—to make the case for confirming Ms. Feldblum before the end of this Congress…
And there is strong support on both sides of the aisle to get this done…
With the exception of one lone Republican Senator.
So I urge my colleague across the aisle to push aside his unprecedented obstructionism…
And I call on the Senate can move forward with confirming the full slate of nominees to the EEOC before this Congress ends…
…so the Commission can continue to fulfill its duty to workers by enforcing protections and ensuring people are able to go to work and make a living without the fear of discrimination, harassment, or abuse.
And M. President, I hope as we are confirming the EEOC nominees, that the Senate also confirms Mark Pearce to another term on the National Labor Relations Board.
Like the EEOC—the Senate has a long history of confirming majority and minority members to the Board in pairs.
However, this year Senate Republicans jammed through the majority members without re-confirming Mr. Pearce—allowing a minority seat to sit empty.
Mr. Pearce is extremely qualified and has a long track record of serving his country for eight years as a Member of the Board.
He has a distinguished background representing unions and workers…
And right now—when the Republican Board members are rushing decisions that chip away at workers’ rights—even violating ethics pledges to do so…
It is clear the Board could benefit from his knowledge, expertise and voice for workers.
As I have told my colleagues across the aisle…
I will not allow the Senate to jam through any HELP Committee nominees until Mr. Pearce and Ms. Feldblum are re-confirmed to their positions on the Board and the EEOC.
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