Press Releases

Today, House Education and Labor Committee Republican Leader Virginia Foxx (R-NC) and Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee Republican Leader Richard Burr (R-NC) sent a letter to Department of Labor Secretary Marty Walsh expressing concern over the “Workers’ Voice Summit” hosted by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). The event, held close to election day for union officials and other political allies, excluded employer groups and amounted to a “pep rally” for the Biden administration and Democrats on the taxpayer’s dime.

In the letter, Foxx and Burr write: “Stakeholders have expressed their concerns about the lack of transparency surrounding the Summit. Held for three days beginning on September 27, information about this meeting and its registration process were apparently closed to a large segment of OSHA’s constituency. … Not only was the registration closed to many interested parties, but there was also no opportunity to listen to the summit, as would have been afforded in a public hearing pursuant to the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (OSH Act). As this was a taxpayer funded summit, this exclusivity is particularly inappropriate and concerning.”

“One of the main objectives of the Summit was to ‘strengthen existing ties between the department and labor unions, [and] worker centers’ among other entities. It is hard to imagine a need for OSHA to strengthen its ties with labor unions,” the Members continue.

The letter continues: “[W]e have serious concerns about OSHA holding its conference at the time it did and with such a select group of people—namely Democrats’ campaign donors. With the Summit being held just over a month before the elections, we are concerned that such an event amounted to a pep rally for the Biden administration and Congressional Democrats. At best, the decision to hold such an event and when it took place can only be described as ‘ill-timed,’ and we consider this activity to be highly inappropriate and unethical.”

Read the letter here.