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BE SMART ABOUT: Marvin Kaplan, National Labor Relations Board
In early August, Republican-controlled Senate confirmed lawyer and former Republican congressional aide Marvin Kaplan to fill one of the two open seats on the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) in a 50-48 party-line vote. This moves the agency, comprised of five individuals, a step closer to a Republican majority when the next nominee is confirmed. At that time, the LABOR board will cease to effectively represent the American worker and again become a corportion cheerleader under the guise of being "pro-business."
The NLRB enforces the 1935 National Labor Relations Act, which guarantees the right of most private sector employees to organize and to curtail certain private sector labor and management practices.
Kaplan previously worked in the U.S. House of Representatives crafting Republican legislation on labor and employment issues. He is no supporter of the NLRB mission to protect private sector employees. Instead he seeks to protect EMPLOYERS. His own biography on LinkedIn stated:
...he “conducted oversight of and investigated allegations of waste, fraud, and abuse by the Department of Labor and National Labor Relations Board.” He also noted that he led efforts to fight U.S. Labor Department overtime rules....
Industry and anti-union groups rejoiced at the progress towards taking over the NLRB.
The Coalition for a Democratic Workplace, an alliance of industry groups that opposed legislation that made it easier for workers to unionize, released a statement lauding the choice.... lauded the apparent progress in moving the board toward a Republican majority after Kaplan’s nomination was announced.
Vocal advocate of the American worker, Senator Elizabeth Warren, fought against the confirmation and expressed her disgust afterwards.
The Trump Admin & @SenateGOP socked it to workers one more time before the summer recess: Confirming an anti-worker nominee to @NLRB.
— Elizabeth Warren (@SenWarren) August 3, 2017
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