For Immediate Release
Wednesday, January 03, 2001
Statement by AFSCME President Gerald W. McEntee On the Nomination of Linda Chavez as Secretary of Labor
The nomination of Linda Chavez for Secretary of Labor by President-elect Bush is extremely disappointing to the Labor community and the working families of America.
This choice jeopardizes the most basic workers' rights and signals the reversal of federal laws and regulations that protect wages, equal employment opportunities, women's rights and affirmative action.
The record of Chavez, a staunch conservative, speaks for itself, and working men and women are on the losing end. As director of the Commission on Civil Rights in the Reagan administration, Chavez favored terminating the Commission and opposed the use of programs to help women and minorities make up for past discrimination. Her opposition to affirmative action clouds her ability as Labor Secretary to manage the largest anti-discrimination program in the country.
We are fearful that she will reverse the important strides that have been made in the area of labor-management relations and protecting workers' rights as well as their health and safety. Take just two issues: the Ergonomics Standard and the effort to increase the minimum wage. She has been outspoken in her opposition to the minimum wage. While we do not know her personal views on the important, new Ergonomics Standard, we are fearful she will be in lockstep with the business community and conservatives in Congress who have vowed to reverse this new, workplace safeguard.
Combined with her outspoken views in opposition to equal pay and anti-discrimination measures, including affirmative action, Chavez' actions as Secretary of Labor, if confirmed, would amount to a substantial setback for the interests of all working Americans. Chavez has testified extensively before Congress and her views are already part of the historical record on many, many important labor issues.
The bottom line is that Linda Chavez is the wrong person to lead the agency charged with protecting the interests of working people. We believe her viewpoints on relevant issues and her actions in previous administrations must be fully and carefully reviewed and taken into account as part of a full examination by Congress.
