Getting to know President Biden's Labor Cabinet Secretary Nominee: Marty Walsh
Walsh, a former union worker, has a long history with labor. He joined Laborers’ Union Local 223 in 1988, at age 21, and served as the president from 2005 until being elected Mayor of Boston in 2013. In January 2011, as head of the Boston Building Trades Council, he was thrust into the middle of virtually every major construction project in the region, from the Novartis Pharmaceuticals headquarters in Cambridge to the redevelopment of the Old Colony housing complex in South Boston.
As the lead representative for 35,000 union construction workers, he negotiated with developers worried about holding down costs and with labor leaders anxious to protect their members’ benefits and pay. He wanted developers to hire only union workers and wasn’t shy about saying so.
AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka publicly endorsed Walsh for the position of Labor Secretary and praised the selection, underscoring Walsh’s background in organized labor. Walsh knows that collective bargaining is essential to building back our economy by combating inequality, beating COVID-19 and expanding opportunities for immigrants, women and people of color.
Walsh’s background in union leadership is certain to influence his priorities as Labor Secretary. Following President-elect Biden’s announcement, Walsh tweeted, “Working people, labor unions, and those fighting every day for their shot at the middle class are the backbone of our economy and of this country. As Secretary of Labor, I’ll work just as hard for you as you do for your families and livelihoods.”
Massachusetts recently began offering paid family and medical leave benefits, and is on its way to mandating a $15 minimum wage (which it will do on January 1, 2023, with gradual increases each year until then). Mayor Walsh was a strong supporter of this effort.
As Secretary of Labor, Walsh will presumably be tasked with helping to implement a number of Biden administration policy changes, including with respect to wages, pay equity, paid leave, and workplace safety. Among his first duties will be aiding the federal government’s continued response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Walsh brings a “pro-worker vision” to the Labor Department that is badly needed. “Walsh has always put hardworking families first,” says Marc Perrone, UFCW International Union President. (To read the full statement from the UFCW supporting Marty Walsh as Labor Secretary click here.)
If confirmed by the Senate, he'd be the first union member to serve in this role in nearly half a century.
Walsh told Boston Herald radio. “I grew up in that household, of unions being good, of unions advocating on behalf of working-class people, unions advocating for better benefits, better working conditions. That’s the house I grew up in.”
Article sources:
https://whdh.com/news/mayor-walsh-president-bidens-pick-for-labor-secretary-attends-inauguration/
https://www.natlawreview.com/article/president-elect-biden-nominates-marty-walsh-secretary-labor
https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2016/04/30/walsh-union-leader-worked-bridge-gap-between-developers-unions/VBVjseduRven1hvF7sg59L/story.html