The U.S. Senate today took the first in a series of party-line votes to confirm Brittany Panuccio to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and Jonathan Berry to be Solicitor of Labor as part of a block of 108 nominees. Following is a statement from Rebecca Dixon, President and CEO of the National Employment Law Project:
“NELP condemns the impending confirmations of Brittany Panuccio to join the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and Jonathan Berry to be the Solicitor of Labor.
“Jonathan Berry is the wrong person to be the Solicitor of Labor. Berry was one of the architects of Project 2025 and the lead writer of its labor and employment chapter. His policy proposals are anti-worker and out of step with what working people in this country want and need.
President Trump’s nominations across the executive and judicial branches have been historically unqualified and dangerous, each meriting heightened scrutiny by the Senate. Instead, the Senate majority has abdicated this constitutional responsibility.
“For example, Berry has proposed allowing states to obtain waivers from the Fair Labor Standards Act’s guarantees of a minimum wage and overtime pay. He has proposed weakening federal child labor laws so that teens can work longer hours, and in more dangerous jobs and conditions. And he has proposed denying any rights in workplaces to LGBTQ+ workers, despite clear Supreme Court rulings mandating their rights. With proposals like these, Berry cannot be trusted with the responsibility of being the U.S. government’s top lawyer charged with protecting workers and their rights.
“Brittany Panuccio will arrive on the job with little relevant experience in the complex legal and policy issues within the EEOC’s jurisdiction. Her confirmation process made clear that Panuccio was selected to be a rubber stamp for President Trump’s hostile takeover of the EEOC.
“Panuccio’s confirmation will cement a Republican majority on the commission, made possible by Trump’s unprecedented, and likely illegal, firing of two Democratic commissioners in January. A Panuccio rubber stamp will allow Acting Chair Andrea Lucas to pursue the full breadth of her extreme agenda for the EEOC: abandoning the defense of vulnerable workers—like LGBTQ workers, pregnant workers, and workers with arrest or conviction records—against illegal discrimination, and unethically leveraging agency power in service of the Trump political and personal-grievance agenda.
“President Trump’s nominations across the executive and judicial branches have been historically unqualified and dangerous, each meriting heightened scrutiny by the Senate. Instead, the Senate majority has abdicated this constitutional responsibility and radically changed Senate rules to ram through more than 100 nominees in a single series of votes. This attempt by the Senate majority to avoid individual accountability for the damage these officials will do in their roles is shameful and harmful to our democracy.
“All workers deserve to thrive in good jobs and be treated fairly in the workplace. We urge members of Congress to conduct strict oversight over the EEOC and the Labor Department, to shine a spotlight on the Trump administration’s efforts to roll back workers’ rights and protections.”
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