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APALA Support Letter for Julie Su Confirmation

4/14/2023

The Honorable Bernie Sanders
Chair, Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions
United States Senate
428 Senate Dirksen Office Building
Washington, DC 20510

The Honorable Bill Cassidy
Ranking Member, Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions
United States Senate
428 Senate Dirksen Office Building
Washington, DC 20510

Dear Chair Sanders and Ranking Member Cassidy:

The Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance, AFL-CIO (APALA) is writing to express our strong support for the confirmation of Julie Su to serve as Secretary of the U.S. Department of Labor. As the first and only national organization of AAPI workers, we believe that Julie Su is uniquely well-suited to lead the Department of Labor in executing its mission to foster, promote, and develop the welfare of the wage earners, job seekers, and retirees of the United States.

Julie Su has devoted her life to fighting for workers’ rights, leveling the playing field for high-road employers, and doing pioneering work to protect the most vulnerable. Her work on the case of trafficked garment workers in 1995 contributed to the creation of seminal federal immigration protections for human trafficking victims, and she has continued advocating with immigrant worker communities like ours throughout her career. If confirmed to be the U.S. Secretary of Labor, Ms. Su would become the only Asian American head of a federal department.

Her experience in state government makes her well-positioned to manage the relationship between the US DOL and their numerous state-level counterparts. As Secretary for the California Labor and Workforce Development Agency, her leadership was critical in ensuring the protection of workers' health and safety during the COVID-19 pandemic while also promoting economic policies to support small businesses. Under her direction, the agency swiftly implemented necessary measures to provide financial relief to those affected by the pandemic.

At a critical time for the Department of Labor to continue supporting workers through the economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, continuity of leadership will enable the DOL to best carry out its mission. Over the past two years, Deputy Secretary Su has proven herself to be an indispensable partner to Secretary Marty Walsh. She has a deep understanding of the inner workings of the DOL, its resources, and operations. Her proven track record as a leader at the Department will enable a smooth leadership transition for the agency and a continuation of the agenda they charted together with President Biden.

APALA stands in strong support of Julie Su to serve as the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Labor. We urge the HELP Committee to swiftly advance her nomination to a vote on the Senate floor and for the Senate to confirm Julie Su without delay.

APALA Unconditionally Supports California SB-403 to End Caste Discrimination

4/6/2023

APALA submitted a letter to the California state legislature in support of SB403, a proposed model legislation that would provide greater protections for caste-oppressed workers. Read below for the full text of the letter.

I am writing on behalf of the Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance, AFL-CIO (APALA), which is a national organization of AAPI workers affiliated with the AFL-CIO, national federation of labor unions, and with eight chapters in California. APALA represents a wide diversity of Asian American and Pacific Islander union members and unorganized workers advocating together for racial minority, immigrant, and workers’ rights. It is in this capacity that we are writing to urge the California Legislature to pass SB403 to ban caste discrimination. If passed, the law would add caste to the state’s list of protected classes, outlawing discrimination in employment, housing, public places and contracting. It would also further empower the California Office for Civil Rights to investigate complaints of caste discrimination and facilitate remedies for all workers in the state.
APALA unconditionally supports your historic California Bill SB403 to end caste discrimination. We stand in full solidarity with our allies at Equality Labs, Californians for Caste Equity, and the coalition of brave caste-oppressed workers, caste oppressed, racial, and gender justice organizations whose tireless organizing made this historic legislation possible.
Freedom from caste discrimination is inextricably tied to workers’ rights. In 2021, APALA passed a resolution condemning caste discrimination and added caste to our own list of protected classes. We have also publicly supported the listing of caste among the protected classes in the public sector in order to ensure that oppressed castes have unobstructed access to good jobs, quality education, social benefits, and representation at the federal, state, county and city levels including school districts. The seriousness of caste discrimination complaints arising from multiple industries including tech, university, construction, and domestic workers makes this an urgent issue.
Despite this urgency, we know that a small group of opponents are trying to use disinformation and bigotry to derail this process by intimidating dalit civil rights organizations and workers rights organizations who are coming together to build power. They also have brazenly attacked your office with gendered islamophobic attacks. They use common anti-worker tactics of smearing Dalit leaders, workers, and electeds who are braving violence and discrimination to break the silence in their advocacy. These acts are deeply anti-democratic. And we ask that the California legislature ensure safe access for all so this bill can pass as swiftly as possible.
As California begins to ensure accountability for the discrimination and harassment that caste-oppressed Californians and workers face within the state, it is imperative to continue the path forward by ratifying and implementing caste protections as quickly as possible, given the grave complaints of caste oppressed stakeholders.
Any attempt to derail this legislation by opponents to caste equity would harm California workers and would undermine the legally guaranteed, democratic processes of civil and workers rights . Workers often face attacks for their organizing on behalf of their workplace and civil rights, and while we are dismayed at the attacks that caste-oppressed workers and students have faced, we believe that their courage and their foundation in the law will ultimately bear fruit. We strongly believe that attempts to discredit these vulnerable stakeholders and their demands for equity and safety are rooted in casteism and make it even clearer that these institutional protections are imperative to ensuring equity. In the United States, one’s future should not be determined by the family you are born into. The oppression of caste goes against the very principles and ideals on which this country was founded.
For this reason we believe that it is significant for both civil and workers’ rights that California leads the nation and passes this historical law. Including caste as a protected category is in line with other institutions who have added caste including Cal State University System, Brown, Brandeis, and Colby college as well as academic union contracts, such as the one passed by the California Faculty Union, Harvard Graduate Student Union, and many ongoing collective bargaining projects underway. We urge you to pass this resolution immediately and thank you again for your courage in standing with caste-oppressed workers and moving California as a leader in diversity and inclusion in the nation.
Sincerely,

Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance, AFL-CIO

Press Releases

APALA Support Letter for Julie Su Confirmation

APALA Unconditionally Supports California SB-403 to End Caste Discrimination

For Immediate Release

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