HIRONO PRAISES CONFIRMATION OF PRESIDENT OBAMA’S NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD NOMINEES

Senator Mazie K. Hirono praised the confirmation of President Obama’s nominees to run the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), the entity that arbitrates federal disputes between workers and management.

“Over the past month, we’ve seen a lot of progress in the Senate for working families,” Hirono said. “We have confirmed a Department of Labor Secretary and nominees to the National Labor Relations Board who respect workers’ desire to join together to protect their rights on the job. Today marks the first time in over 10 years that we will have five confirmed NLRB members. Workers in Hawaii and across the country deserve a fair hearing, and having a fully functioning NLRB will go a long way to achieving this goal.”

After months of Republicans refusing to vote for confirmation of many of President Obama’s nominees, the Senate today confirmed a full set of 5 board members. If the Senate had not acted, the board would not have enough members for a quorum to conduct business. Last week, the Senate confirmed Tom Perez as U.S. Secretary of Labor.