VIDEO: Hirono Emphasizes Support for Acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) delivered remarks on the Senate floor in support of Julie Su, Acting Secretary for the U.S. Department of Labor. In her remarks, Senator Hirono expressed her strong support for Su’s nomination and emphasized the Acting Secretary’s track record of bringing labor and business together to resolve disputes and keep the economy moving forward.

“Julie Su isn’t a politician,” Senator Hirono said on the floor. “She has dedicated her life to fighting for working people and leveling the playing field between labor and big business. She knows that the work of the Department of Labor isn’t about her, it’s about the millions of working people who keep our economy and our country moving forward.”

Senator Hirono has remained a strong advocate on behalf of Julie Su’s nomination to become Secretary of Labor. If confirmed, Su would be the first Asian-American in the Biden administration to serve in the Cabinet at the secretary level. In May, Senator Hirono took to the Senate floor to urge the swift confirmation of Julie Su as the country’s next Secretary of Labor. When President Biden was elected in 2020, Senator Hirono sent him a letter, expressing her “strong support” for Su to serve as the next Secretary of the Department of Labor.

Senator Hirono’s full remarks are below and video is available for download here.

M. President, I rise to express my support and appreciation for Acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su, and all she is doing to uplift workers and businesses across our country. Acting Secretary Su has been leading the Department of Labor for nearly 5 months. She previously served as Deputy Secretary of Labor—in both positions, she has shown her ability to bring labor and management together to resolve disputes. She did so to avert a freight railroad strike and, recently, as Acting Secretary, she helped avert a catastrophic strike at ports all along the west coast. Had major ports come to a screeching halt, our country would have experienced massive supply chains disruptions, costing our economy billions of dollars.

As Gene Seroka, the Director of the Port of Los Angeles put it, Julie was “a constant and reassuring voice of reason that helped to keep both sides at the bargaining table and focused on resolution.” As she often does, Julie got the job done without fanfare or attention. She didn’t ask for credit or recognition. She simply did the work. That’s what she’s done throughout her career, whether while fighting for undocumented garment workers in California, or helping the Biden-Harris Administration create more than 13 million jobs.

Julie Su isn’t a politician. She has dedicated her life to fighting for working people and leveling the playing field between labor and big business. She knows that the work of the Department of Labor isn’t about her, it’s about the millions of working people who keep our economy and our country moving forward.

M. President, when I first immigrated to this country, we had just one suitcase and our first home was a room in a boarding house. My mother’s perseverance eventually enabled her to get a job at the Honolulu Advertiser. While that job was non-union when she was first hired, my mother and her coworkers ultimately came together to form a union. It was then that mom’s pay increased, providing the stability that allowed our family to buy a house and enter the middle class.

Unions are critical at a time when economic disparity continues to grow. We are seeing a resurgence of labor organizing across our country. From Honolulu to Hollywood, and far beyond, actors, writers, Teamsters, and so many others are organizing to demand fair pay, decent treatment, and basic dignity. At a time like this, we need a Labor Secretary who can bring labor and management together—Julie Su is that person.

Julie has broad support from business and labor alike, garnering the endorsement of groups including the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce; Small Business Majority; the AFL-CIO; and dozens of labor unions across the country. Given her experience, her qualifications, and those endorsements, it’s hard to understand my colleagues’ objection to her nomination, especially by those who voted to confirm her as Deputy Secretary in 2021.

Over the last few months, she has endured lies about her record, condescending questions about her qualifications, and an unprecedented campaign by special interests to derail her nomination, going so far as to put up anti-Julie Su billboards in a number of states. In spite of this coordinated smear campaign, Julie has a strong commitment to public service and to doing the job President Biden has asked her to do. She will persevere.

Like millions of working people all across our country, I am grateful for Julie’s perseverance and her leadership. I hope my colleagues will acknowledge her record of accomplishments and her ability to do the job, and support Julie’s nomination. In the meantime, I know that she will continue to do her job and our country will be better for it.

Thank you.

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