[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 185 (Thursday, October 21, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Page S7147]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                    Nomination of Douglas L. Parker

  Mr. President, I would also like to speak about President Biden's 
nominee to serve as Assistant Secretary of Occupational Safety and 
Health, Doug Parker.
  This pandemic has put OSHA's critical work in the spotlight and 
underscored the Agency's responsibility to act and keep our workers 
safe. I am so glad President Biden has called on the Agency to take the 
critical step of setting forward an emergency temporary standard to 
require large employers to use appropriate tools, like vaccines and 
testing, to keep our workers safe from COVID-19.
  I hope to see progress on this front soon. Actions like that can save 
countless lives and are a reminder of why it is so critical we have an 
experienced leader at OSHA who will do everything in their power to 
champion worker safety.
  Mr. Parker's record shows he has been doing that his entire career. 
Mr. Parker has worked to protect workers in his State throughout this 
pandemic as chief of California's Division of Occupational Safety and 
Health, starting with his move to swiftly issue health guidance back in 
February of 2020, when there were only 13 cases of COVID-19 in the 
entire country.
  Even well before this pandemic, he had an established record fighting 
for worker safety as an attorney of the United Mine Workers, a partner 
at a labor and employment law firm in Washington, DC; and senior 
official at the Department of Labor's Mine Safety and Health 
Administration during one of the best streaks of safety in the 
industry's history.
  When he previously left the Department of Labor, he went on to serve 
as the executive director of Worksafe. That is a legal aid nonprofit 
focused on worker health and safety.
  At every step in his career, Mr. Parker has been a dogged advocate 
for worker safety. I have no doubt he will continue when he is 
confirmed to lead OSHA. Given the urgency of this pandemic and the 
clear qualifications of this nominee, I hope all of our colleagues will 
join me in voting in support of Mr. Parker's nomination.