Standing with workers on May Day

May 1st is the day we celebrate International Workers' Day – a global recognition of the 1886 "Haymarket affair" that helped establish the eight-hour workday and kicked off an era of critical protections for working people worldwide.

So it's ironic that Trump's Labor Secretary, Alex Acosta, appeared before the Education and Labor Committee on May 1st to try to defend his misguided policies – namely, stripping protections for working people while delivering favors for big business.

I pressed Secretary Acosta about his department's proposal to require workers to share their tips with their employers. The department did – and then tried to hide – a report showing that the policy would take more than $5 billion out of the pockets of working people and would disproportionately harm women and people of color.

Secretary Acosta has so far ignored multiple requests to make that report available to Congress; at the hearing, he refused to even say whether he's provided it to the Inspector General in connection with an investigation.

Acosta also dodged questions about his decision to make it easier for federal contractors to avoid accountability for gender-based wage discrimination.

Working families are the backbone of our communities and our economy. I'm honored to fight by their side – on May Day and every day.

Thank you for standing with me,