At a House Appropriations Committee hearing last week, Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) spoke to Sec. Lori Chavez-DeRemer about her budget proposal.
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00:00Thank you. The chair now recognizes
00:03Ranking Member DeLore for closing remarks.
00:08Thank you very, very much.
00:10Let me just say one thing about the paid leave.
00:13You may or may not know this because I have been here for 34 years,
00:1832 on this committee, but in 1997,
00:22I introduced the paid family and medical leave bill.
00:26I actually worked for Senator Christopher Dodd,
00:29who introduced the first family and medical leave legislation,
00:34which took several years to pass,
00:36and finally passed by President Clinton.
00:41And we knew at the time that we couldn't get paid leave,
00:43so I've been on that mission since I arrived in this institution.
00:48I lead and author the Family Act.
00:51It guarantees 12 weeks of paid leave to all workers.
00:54The lack of having a paid leave program
00:57cost this economy about $22.5 billion a year.
01:00So I hope my colleagues would support that bill
01:03and that you can look at it,
01:06and I would hope to get your support for workers
01:08by supporting the Family Act, again, introduced in 1997.
01:13So I'm not talking about particular administrations.
01:17I just think we have to meet the moment
01:19and do what's right for American families across the board,
01:23and it's particularly helpful for women as well.
01:28Let me also make this statement to you,
01:30because I do believe you have very much,
01:34and you talked about,
01:35as I talked about being a daughter of a garment worker,
01:38you're the daughter of a teamster.
01:40So you have some idea of the history
01:45of what the labor movement has meant in the United States.
01:50And what it has done, as I said in my remarks,
01:52created the middle class in this country.
01:56But if I were you,
01:59and I just mean this very, very sincerely,
02:02you head up the department that is central
02:09to what happens to working men and women in this country.
02:15If you can,
02:17and I don't know if this is possible for you,
02:20but your values with regard to this issue
02:23and, quite frankly,
02:27the values of others
02:28who have proposed a budget
02:30and the disconnect between your values
02:33and the budget presented
02:35are really stark.
02:37And whatever way that you can find,
02:42I don't know,
02:43invade your space
02:44or how you navigate
02:46the direction of what you believe
02:49and what is occurring,
02:52I think you have to come to grips with that.
02:55Some of my colleagues here today
02:57would, when they smear
02:59regulations from labor laws,
03:02we need to remember
03:03what working traditions
03:05were like for U.S. workers
03:07before the enactment
03:08of our labor laws
03:09and the promulgation
03:11of the associated regulations
03:13and standards
03:14when we deal with OSHA
03:15or MSHA
03:16and these efforts.
03:19And it was the first Secretary of Labor
03:21who was a woman,
03:22Frances Perkins,
03:23who was my role model.
03:25She dealt with what happened
03:28in regulations
03:29after the Triangle fire.
03:33It was a massive loss of life,
03:35particularly of women.
03:37And I wrote a book in 2011
03:39and the opening graph of that book,
03:42and I'm going to read it.
03:44It bears repeating
03:45that the reasons companies
03:47do not feel free to poison us,
03:49to sell us spoiled meat,
03:51lock our daughters up
03:52in ninth floor sweatshops
03:55with no fire escapes,
03:56employ our underage sons
03:58in coal mines,
03:59force us to work 13-hour shifts
04:01without overtime or a break,
04:03or call in private armies
04:04to fire rifles
04:05at those of us
04:06who dare strike
04:07for higher wages.
04:09It's not because companies
04:11experienced a moment of zen
04:13and decided to evolve.
04:15No, they were forced
04:17into greater accountability
04:18and social concern
04:20by the legitimate actions
04:22of a democratic,
04:23that's a small d,
04:25a democratic government.
04:26In other words,
04:27if we depend on goodwill,
04:30we are all screwed.
04:32That is the opening paragraph
04:34of my book.
04:36You have the enormous responsibility
04:40of making sure
04:43that workers on the job
04:46are safe in addition
04:47to their wages
04:48and a whole variety
04:49of other things,
04:51and to look at those
04:53who would want
04:54to dismiss regulations,
04:57speak about whatever kind
04:59of a market that they want,
05:01would allow us to go back
05:03to an era
05:05when workers,
05:08men and women,
05:09were abused
05:10in the workforce.
05:11And I don't believe
05:12that you want to do that.
05:15I also was very concerned
05:16when we were talking
05:17here today
05:18about,
05:20you're in charge,
05:23but Elon Musk announced
05:24the deferred resignation program
05:26that has gutted your staff,
05:29but you won't share data
05:30on the impacts
05:31of the response
05:32to our letters
05:33or to our questions
05:34at this hearing.
05:35So I have to wonder,
05:38is Elon Musk in charge?
05:40Should we ask him
05:41the questions?
05:43Are the questions
05:44best directed to him?
05:46Or are you,
05:47the Secretary of Labor,
05:48in charge
05:49of the Department
05:50of Labor's staff?
05:52We did get a response.
05:54We wrote to you
05:54two months ago,
05:56the first issue,
05:58and I mentioned this
05:58to you over the phone.
05:59We mentioned,
06:00we wrote two months ago
06:01to you, myself,
06:03Senator Murray,
06:03Senator Baldwin,
06:05Congressman Scott,
06:06Senator Sanders,
06:06expressing concerns
06:07about the staffing reductions
06:09and office closures.
06:11We got a letter yesterday,
06:14a one-page letter,
06:15no information
06:16about the number
06:16of employees
06:17that have been fired,
06:18placed on administrative leave,
06:20or who took
06:20early retirement options.
06:22My colleague,
06:23Mr. Hoyer,
06:23asked about this,
06:24but you have to provide
06:25to this committee,
06:26and I hope you will commit
06:27to do this.
06:28You have to commit
06:28to doing this.
06:30A list of the programs
06:31of the Department
06:31of Labor
06:31whose funding
06:32has been cut,
06:33frozen since January 20th,
06:35along with what
06:36was the criteria
06:37for gutting
06:38or freezing those funds.
06:40I'm all for cutting.
06:42I cut Job Corps programs
06:44in the past
06:45that were not working.
06:46Give us the criteria
06:47on which these programs
06:50were cut.
06:51We may agree with you,
06:52but we have a dialogue,
06:53agree or disagree,
06:55on what's happened.
06:56We have no information.
06:57We're just told
06:58that there was
06:59a $2 trillion goal
07:01that had to be met
07:02for saving,
07:04and therefore,
07:05let's cut
07:06without any thought
07:08about consequences
07:09of any of these cuts.
07:10You need to provide
07:11the committee
07:11with the number
07:12of employees
07:12at department
07:13by agency
07:14who received
07:15a reduction
07:15in force notification,
07:17and will you provide
07:18this committee
07:18the number
07:19of probationary employees
07:20by agency
07:21whose employment
07:22at the department
07:23was terminated.
07:24You have to provide
07:25the committee
07:26the number of employees
07:27at the department
07:28by agency
07:29who accepted
07:30early retirement offers,
07:33and we need to do that
07:34as quickly as possible
07:35if we are to address
07:36the appropriations
07:38for this department
07:39moving forward.
07:41Let me also mention to you
07:45the cuts in,
07:47we've talked about
07:48training programs,
07:50upskilling,
07:51workforce.
07:53Yes,
07:54and I told you
07:55about registered
07:55apprenticeships.
07:56I've been fighting
07:57for that for years,
07:58and I don't want
07:58unregistered apprenticeships.
08:00I think it's a boondoggle,
08:02and it's BS.
08:03It's registered
08:04so we know
08:05what's happening
08:05and that people
08:06have a job
08:06at the end of the line.
08:09But the 2026 budget proposal
08:12slashes job training programs
08:13by $3.6 billion.
08:15That's a 35% cut.
08:18That's opportunities
08:18for American workers.
08:20The president is asking
08:22to cut these funds
08:23while he administers
08:24disastrous policies
08:26that increase the cost
08:28of living for the middle class.
08:29We talked about WIOA.
08:31We've appropriated 2025
08:34and understand that 2025,
08:37the numbers,
08:37are based on 2024.
08:39That's the budget.
08:40That's what,
08:41I didn't vote for it,
08:42but everyone on the other side
08:43of the aisle voted
08:44for a continuing resolution
08:46that says,
08:47let's continue
08:47the 2024 budget.
08:49And in that 2024 budget
08:52for 2025,
08:54the Congress appropriated
08:55$2.9 billion
08:56for WIOA grants
08:58to states
08:58and for job training programs.
09:01It's a violation of the law
09:03and of the Constitution
09:04to steal the appropriated funds
09:07from this committee
09:08or any other committee
09:10and move the dollars
09:11wherever you want to.
09:12No, it's against the law.
09:14And let me just say,
09:15you don't have to answer
09:16these questions now,
09:17but I'm going to submit it.
09:18Are you planning to freeze
09:19and withhold
09:20congressionally appropriate
09:21funding for WIOA job
09:22state grants?
09:23Do you commit to following
09:24the law and fully obligating
09:25funding that Congress appropriated
09:27for WIOA job training
09:28state grants
09:28in fiscal year 2025?
09:30How many fewer participants
09:32would be served
09:33as a result
09:34of these proposed cuts?
09:35How would that impact
09:36the hiring needs
09:37of employers
09:38looking for skilled workers?
09:40Is there a role
09:41for publicly funded
09:42workforce development programs
09:43or is your goal
09:44to only have
09:45workforce training
09:46by private companies?
09:48These are questions
09:49that we need
09:50to have answered.
09:53And I just say to you
09:55that I'm sorry,
09:58OSHA closings,
10:00offices closed.
10:02Louisiana,
10:03the only office
10:04in Louisiana
10:05for OSHA
10:06is closed.
10:07The only office
10:08in Oklahoma
10:09closed.
10:09in Arkansas,
10:11most of the offices
10:12in Illinois,
10:14over half in Georgia,
10:15the Florida Panhandle,
10:16the Great Lakes region,
10:19MSHA,
10:19deeper cuts,
10:21you restrict inspector travel.
10:23It's been pointed out
10:25with regard
10:27to the mining
10:28incidences
10:30in the first four months
10:31of 2025.
10:32But that staff
10:36has been cut
10:37and offices closed.
10:40I do believe
10:42you fundamentally,
10:45you believe
10:46in workers' rights
10:48and safe workplaces.
10:54But I think
10:55you're in an environment
10:56where there may be others
10:58who don't share
10:59those values.
11:01And they're
11:01demonstrating it
11:02by the presentation
11:05of their budget.
11:06And we've heard
11:07about these cuts,
11:08not from you.
11:09You retweeted
11:10from Doge
11:12what the cuts.
11:14ILAP,
11:14WANTO,
11:15those grants cancellations
11:16were announced
11:17by Musk's Doge account
11:19and you retweeted
11:24that news.
11:26Madam Secretary,
11:26the American worker
11:29is relying on you
11:31and relying on us
11:34to make sure
11:36that we don't gut
11:39the worker programs
11:41that people have lived
11:43and died for
11:44in this country
11:45and to move forward.
11:47It is an awesome responsibility.
11:49I wanted to be,
11:51and I was interviewed
11:52for the position
11:53of Secretary of Labor
11:55in the Obama administration.
11:56And when he asked me
11:59what I wanted to do,
12:01I said I wanted
12:01to be Francis Perkins.
12:03I want to protect
12:05the rights
12:05of American workers,
12:07men and women,
12:08protect children,
12:10guard against forced labor,
12:12make sure our trade agreements
12:14are worker-centered.
12:16I believe you have
12:17those concerns as well
12:18and I care about those.
12:19that's not as well.
12:20No?
12:21No.
12:21No.
12:34No.
12:34No.
12:34No.
12:35No.
12:35No.
12:36No.
12:36No.
12:38No.
12:38No.