PLEASE CALL YOUR SENATORS NOW! Tell them Oppose Andrew Puzder

A Department for Labor or a Department Against Labor?

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A Department for Labor or a Department Against Labor? Weigh in on Andrew Puzder's nomination for Secretary of Labor by calling your Senators at 877-607-0785.

In late July 1933, in the midst of the Great Depression and early months of FDR’s presidency, Secretary of Labor Frances Perkins spent time touring steel mills, listening to workers’ concerns and visiting their families living in company-owned housing. She made it clear that Roosevelt’s Administration was paying attention. Shortly after, she’d declare, “I have come to the conclusion that the Department of Labor should be the Department FOR labor, and that we should render service to the working people.” Reforms made during Perkins’ tenure would ultimately help grow unions – including our own – and build the middle class. In stark contrast, today’s nominee for Secretary of Labor, Andrew Puzder, has a track record that suggests he’d create a Department AGAINST labor: His company breaks the laws he’d be in charge of enforcing – Puzder is corporate attorney and CEO of CKE Restaurants (Hardees & Carl’s Jr.). Employees report they’re pressured to work “off the clock” as they approach 40 hours so the company can avoid paying overtime. Sixty percent of CKE restaurants had at least one violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA covers overtime, minimum wage, child labor and more). He’s in favor of creating jobs . . . for machines – Puzder declared support for replacing workers with machines in Business Insider last March, saying machines “always upsell, they never take a vacation, they never show up late, there’s never a slip-and-fall, or an age, sex or race discrimination case.” He fails workers – Workers from Carl's Jr. and Hardee's have come forward with stories of mistreatment, including sexual harassment. Many say management failed to act on their complaints. Puzder’s said a new overtime rule that would expand protections to millions of low-wage workers classified as “managers” isn’t needed, saying what they lose in overtime pay they gain in “stature” and “sense of accomplishment.”

Please Call Your Senators The Department of Labor is a critical agency that oversees MSHA, OSHA and many laws that protect our rights on the job. A Senate hearing on Puzder’s confirmation is scheduled for February 2. Please make calls between now and then to raise concerns. We need a Secretary of Labor that will work for us on the job – not against us. Remember: calls only take a minute, but have a significant impact. Dial 877-607-0785. If you’re not sure of your Senators, the number will direct you to the correct lawmakers. Leave a message with the staff saying who you are, where you’re from and that you want your Senator to oppose Andrew Puzder for Secretary of Labor.

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