During Thursday's House Education and the Workforce Committee hearing, Rep. Mary Miller (R-IL) questioned Department of Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer about firings of employees who refused to get the COVID-19 vaccine.
00:02I now recognize the gentlelady from Illinois, Ms. Miller.
00:05Good morning, Secretary Chavez de Reamer, and welcome back to the House.
00:09Thank you, Congresswoman.
00:11The Biden-Harris Department of Labor issued a nightmarish scenario of regulations that were especially hard on small businesses and independent contractors.
00:23Among the pile of disastrous rules was the infamous heat standard, as well as the worker walk-around rule.
00:31As if that wasn't enough, Democrats wanted to further burden independent contractors with more regulations to stifle economic growth and job opportunities.
00:42And for all the grief the Democrats have given the Trump administration over cutting waste, fraud, and abuse,
00:49we didn't hear one word from them when thousands of healthcare workers, government employees, and military personnel were fired for refusing to take the COVID-19 vaccine.
01:01Most shockingly, Biden's Secretary of Labor never actually was Secretary of Labor.
01:08She was so radical she couldn't get confirmed by the Democrat-controlled Senate, and yet she oversaw the Department of Labor for nearly two years.
01:18Furthermore, OSHA strayed far from their mission, opting to persecute small businesses rather than secure worker safety.
01:27Small businesses and independent contractors are at the heart of the American economy, and thankfully, President Trump is back in office to stop the insanity of the last four years.
01:39In 2021, the Biden-Harris administration issued an executive order to require employees to get vaccinated for COVID-19 or lose their jobs.
01:49As a result of this and similar state mandates, thousands of federal workers and military personnel were fired for refusing to take the COVID-19 vaccine.
02:00Is there anything the Department of Labor can do to correct this gross injustice and especially to ensure that it never happens again?
02:09Thank you, Congresswoman, for all of those thoughts on protecting the American worker first.
02:15Working for the Trump administration, we are in line with protecting the American worker.
02:21I talked to the President on this issue in regards to we will always put the American worker at the pinnacle and keep them safe.
02:29We want to make sure that we're growing our economy and that we're developing and expanding the workforce, and we want to protect them at all costs.
02:36And I'll look to Congress for any congressional review that they would like to do.
02:40But it is my job, again, as the Labor Secretary, that we are enforcing the law and protecting the American workers as we go through either side of regulation or rulemaking and throughout this process.
02:51So does that mean that our workers are not going to be forced to take experimental vaccines in the future or lose their jobs?
03:00I appreciate there are no vaccine mandates under this administration.
03:06If made final on its current form, the proposed Biden-Harris heat standard would negatively impact many businesses, both medium and small.
03:15Most importantly, this rule would significantly impact the agriculture industry in my district and across the nation.
03:22Does the Department of Labor intend to abandon the proposed Biden-Harris heat standard?
03:29No, thank you again.
03:30In regarding the standards of the occupational safety, ensuring the rules are prioritizing what is best for the marketplace and, again, the one-size-fits-all.
03:37I cannot comment on the specifics as it is currently inactive rulemaking.
03:41We have to follow the Administrative Procedures Act, and so that is – we have to wait for all stakeholders to weigh in before I can talk about it at this time.
03:50What I will say, though, is that we do value the rulemaking process, and as OSHA continues to analyze the transcripts and we come forward, I'm glad to report back out to the committee on where we are in this process.
04:02Thank you, and I expect that we will have reasonable regulations and –
04:06Well, common sense regulations is the key to growing the economy.
04:10Right.
04:11I don't think that that should surprise anybody here.
04:13At the Department of Labor, one of my goals, ultimately, is to always, again, make sure that our workers are safe and that they do get home safe.
04:20But compliances as well.
04:22When we work with our American companies and our businesses, that is the number one goal, is that we help and not be an adversary from the federal level, but to be an ally for our businesses.
04:31That is America First policy, is what this administration would like to see.
04:36If we're going to grow our workforce, we have to be amenable and work with our local businesses on the ground to understand what those market demands are, and then assist them in the compliance of doing so, and at the same time, keep our American workers safe first.
04:49Thank you, and I think it will help our nation thrive and our communities.
04:53So, OSHA went well beyond its original mission during the Biden-Harris administration, persecuting small businesses instead of ensuring worker safety.
05:02So, I trust that OSHA is changing its approach when working as a safety partner.
05:07I think that's what you assured us.
05:10The compliance component, I think, is key.
05:13And, you know, just not weaponizing at all when we're in the enforcement section of the Department of Labor.
05:21We want to make sure that our businesses understand what the laws are, they follow the law, and how we can assist them in those compliance efforts.
05:27And we're doing that throughout all of our agencies, through those opinion letters, through our websites, through our education systems, that we can educate our, you know, listen, our businesses, first and foremost, they're the front line to protecting the American worker.
05:40And I can tell you this, when I move throughout the country, they want to do the right thing.
05:44They are trying to do the right thing.
05:45And it is my job as the Department of Labor and through all of the sub-agencies is to assist them in doing the right thing.
05:52If then knowingly they choose not to, well, that's when the enforcement can happen.
05:56I thank the secretary and I thank the gentlelady whose time has expired.
05:59And, folks, let's start not asking the question in the last ten seconds.
06:04I won't answer any more after that.
06:07My patience is going to wane here pretty soon.
