[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 148 (Monday, December 8, 2014)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6377-S6378]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          McFERRAN NOMINATION

  Mr. HARKIN. Mr. President, I speak in support of the nomination of 
Lauren McFerran to fill an approaching vacancy on the National Labor 
Relations Board. I was heartened by the recent cloture vote in support 
of the McFerran nomination and urge my colleagues in just a short while 
to vote in favor of her confirmation.
  Ms. McFerran is well known to most of us as a senior staffer on the 
HELP Committee, where she has long served as chief labor counsel and 
more recently as deputy staff director. She has been nominated to fill 
a vacancy that will result from the departure later this month of a 
current Board Member, Nancy Schiffer. I would like to take this 
opportunity to publicly thank Ms. Schiffer for her dedicated service to 
the National Labor Relations Board. She has been a highly respected 
Board Member and I wish her every success in her future endeavors.
  I also want to say a word about the previous nominee to the Board, 
Sharon Block, whose nomination was withdrawn at the insistence of 
Senate Republicans. Although I have no doubt that Ms. McFerran will 
serve with fairness and distinction, it is unfortunate that Sharon 
Block, a dedicated public servant, will not have the opportunity to 
serve further on the National Labor Relations Board. Ms. Block was an 
extraordinarily qualified nominee who was widely respected by both 
Democrats and Republicans alike. Ms. Block's nomination was withdrawn 
as a result of circumstances wholly beyond her control. But her 
qualifications and experience are undiminished and untarnished by the 
circumstances that led to the withdrawal of her nomination.
  The National Labor Relations Board is an agency that is absolutely 
critical to our country, to our economy, and to our middle class. Over 
75 years ago, Congress enacted the National Labor Relations Act, 
guaranteeing American workers the right to form and join a union and to 
bargain for a better life. That act sets forth a national policy to 
encourage collective bargaining--to encourage collective bargaining. 
That is the national policy of this government, and has been since 
1935.
  Let me read what the act specifically states:

       It is declared to be the policy of the United States to 
     eliminate the causes of certain substantial obstructions to 
     the free flow of commerce and to mitigate and eliminate these 
     obstructions when they have occurred by encouraging the 
     practice and procedure of collective bargaining and by 
     protecting the exercise by workers of full freedom of 
     association, self-organization, and designation of 
     representatives of their own choosing, for the purpose of 
     negotiating the terms and conditions of their employment or 
     other mutual aid or protection.


[[Page S6378]]


  That is the policy of the U.S. Government, to encourage collective 
bargaining, not to destroy it, not to tear it down, not to throw up 
roadblocks against collective bargaining, but to encourage it. Those 
who continually attack the National Labor Relations Board, who try to 
interfere in its procedures, many times are those who want to throw a 
monkey wrench into collective bargaining. Well, they are going against 
the policy of the United States.
  I am proud to be a citizen of a country that promotes collective 
bargaining, to allow workers to negotiate for better wages, better 
conditions, safe working conditions, a country that protects 
fundamental rights such as the freedom of association.
  The act provides these essential protections for union and nonunion 
workers alike. It gives workers a voice in the workplace, allowing them 
to join together and speak up for the very essence of middle-class 
jobs: fair wages, good benefits, safe working conditions. These rights 
ensure that the people who do the real work in this country have a shot 
at joining the middle class and receiving a fair share of the benefits 
when our economy grows.
  The NLRB, the National Labor Relations Board, is the guardian of 
these fundamental rights. Workers themselves cannot enforce the 
National Labor Relations Act, but they can turn to the Board if they 
have been denied the basic protections provided under the law. In 
short, the Board plays a vital role in vindicating workers' rights.
  Get this. Understand this. In the past 10 years, the National Labor 
Relations Board, the NLRB, has secured opportunities for reinstatement 
of 22,544 employees who were unjustly fired. Over that same past 10 
years, the NLRB has recovered more than $1 billion on behalf of workers 
whose rights and wages were violated.
  The Board also provides relief and remedies to our Nation's 
employers. A lot of people think the NLRB is just there for the 
workers. Not so. It is there to help employers too. For example, 
employers can turn to the Board for relief if a union commences a 
wildcat strike or refuses to bargain in good faith during negotiations. 
The NLRB has a long history of helping businesses resolve disputes 
efficiently.
  By preventing or resolving labor disputes that could disrupt our 
economy, the work the Board does is vital to every worker and every 
business across the Nation. That is why it is so important that we 
maintain a fully functional five-member NLRB. I am proud of the fact 
that just over a year ago, we were able to confirm Members to 
completely fill the first Board in over a decade. Now we need to fill a 
soon-to-be-open seat so the Board can continue to function effectively. 
That is what this vote coming up is all about.
  It is unfortunate that some of my friends on the other side of the 
aisle do not believe in the National Labor Relations Act--not all of 
them, but a very vocal minority, I would say. They do not agree that it 
should be the policy of the United States to promote collective 
bargaining and self-organization in order to prevent disruptions in 
``the free flow of commerce'' that can have a detrimental impact on our 
Nation's economy.
  They would like to change the existing law if they could, but they do 
not have the votes. So, instead, they have attempted to pull every 
possible lever to slow down the work that goes on at the NLRB. 
Recently, Republicans in the House of Representatives have held hearing 
after hearing specifically addressing the NLRB. They passed two bills 
to amend the NLRA, the National Labor Relations Act, to strip workers 
of their rights. Republican elected officials have tried to defund the 
agency, threatening the professional credentials and livelihoods of 
nonpartisan career employees, and even called on a Republican Board 
Member to resign in order to incapacitate the agency. You heard me 
right. Republicans called on a Republican Board Member of the National 
Labor Relations Board to leave it, and then they would not have enough 
Members to function.
  What most concerns me about this political game-playing is how it 
affects the everyday lives of workers across America. For workers who 
are disciplined, penalized, even fired unjustly by employers, it is the 
NLRB that ensures that workers who are illegally punished, as I 
mentioned, can get back their jobs and lost wages.
  This is exactly why we need to confirm Ms. McFerran today. No one can 
contest her qualifications. As I said, she currently serves as both 
chief labor counsel and deputy staff director of the Senate HELP 
Committee. I am proud to have her as a member of my staff. She has 
served this committee with excellence and great professionalism, first 
hired by my predecessor Senator Kennedy. She stayed on after his 
passing and my assumption of the chairmanship of the committee.
  She has a deep knowledge of labor law. She is an incredibly talented 
lawyer. She is a person of sterling integrity and strong character. She 
will be a great asset to the Board. It is my hope that by promptly 
confirming Ms. McFerran's nomination to fill the upcoming vacancy, we 
can continue the progress that has been made recently and begin a new 
era where orderly transitions on the NLRB are the norm, where we do not 
go month after month, year after year, with vacancies, with a board 
that cannot function.
  Instead of letting every vacancy become a political football, with 
threats to shutter the Board, and pressure for recess appointments, we 
should set a new precedent of confirming nominees, Democratic and 
Republican alike, in a timely manner, allowing the dedicated public 
servants at the Board to stop worrying about making headlines and 
instead focus on the important work they do every day.
  Again, that important work includes assuring that American workers 
are able to exercise their right to freedom of association. In the 
workplace, this freedom means collectively bargaining for better wages, 
benefits, and working conditions. It is enshrined in the National Labor 
Relations Act and upheld by the NLRB.
  I have no doubt that Ms. McFerran will do an excellent job in this 
important position. I urge my colleagues to support her confirmation 
later this afternoon.
  I yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. LEAHY. I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call 
be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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