CWA Opposes Plan to Merge Departments of Labor and Education

The Trump Administration came out with a new proposal this week to merge the Department of Labor and the Department of Education, a move that would weaken programs that serve and protect working families and concentrate even more power in the hands of large corporations.

For more than 100 years, the Department of Labor has had a unique and specific mission – to promote and develop the well being of working people in the United States, to improve working conditions and workplace safety, and to enforce the laws that protect our rights in the workplace, including the right to join together to negotiate for better wages, benefits, and working conditions.

While the Department of Education is a newer agency, its mission is no less important. It is responsible for making sure our young people are well-educated and have equal access to education and that our schools are free from discrimination.

"The Administration wants corporations to have more power over our lives. But children need a Department of Education that stands up for them. Working people need a Department of Labor that stands up for them. This radical plan would weaken both agencies, leaving working people and children more vulnerable to corporate abuses at work and in the education system. We urge Congress to reject this ill-conceived plan," CWA said in a statement.