Press Releases

  Washington, D.C., July 29– U.S. Senator Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), the senior Republican on the Senate labor committee, today released the following statement on reports that the National Labor Relations Board’s general counsel determined that McDonald’s holds joint employer responsibilities of workers at its...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA), Chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, released the following statement in recognition of the 24th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The ADA is a signature achievement for Harkin, who authored the bill and was its chief sponsor in the...

*** “Many states are doing innovative work…. I am interested in how the federal government is getting in the way of state innovation.” –Lamar Alexander   Washington, D.C., July 24 – U.S. Senator Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), the senior Republican on the Senate education committee, today said the Washington...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—On the fifth anniversary of the last minimum wage increase, Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA), Representative George Miller (D-CA), and Senator Al Franken (D-MN) held a press conference to outline the growing pay cut currently faced by millions of minimum- and low-wage workers as a result of Congressional Republicans’ refusal...

“Since the establishment of state land-grant universities, our country has rightly recognized higher education as an essential public good. States have played a critical role to an affordable college education, through investing in higher education, being a key player in oversight, and developing strategies to increase degree...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Today, Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA), Chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, issued the following statement after the HELP Committee approved seven bipartisan bills at a Committee markup today. The approved bills include: the Promoting Physical Activity for Americans Act; the Paul D....

WASHINGTON, D.C.—In response to recent workplace trends and supporting research that suggests uncertain work schedules can have broad negative consequences for working families, leading Democratic members of Congress today introduced legislation to stem abusive scheduling practices directed primarily at hourly workers. In some of the...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA), Chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, today issued the following statement after President Obama signed into law the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA). The bill seeks to update and improve the nation’s workforce development and...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) released the following statement today following rulings from the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals (King v. Burwell)  and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit (Halbig v. Burwell) regarding the use of tax credits on state-based Health Insurance Marketplaces. Harkin is...

Washington, D.C., July 22 – U.S. Senator Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), the senior Republican on the Senate health committee, today released the following statement on a federal appeals court ruling that Americans in 36 states, including Tennessee, cannot receive Obamacare subsidies through the federal exchange: “This is yet more evidence...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) released the following statement today applauding the approval of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CPRD) by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and urging its consideration by the full Senate. Harkin is the Senate author of the 1990 Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)...

*As Prepared for Delivery* “Thank you to Senator Casey for holding this important hearing so that we can learn more about the struggles that coal miners and their families face when filing claims for benefits under the Black Lung Benefits Act.  “Although we don’t really mine coal in Iowa anymore, protecting the health,...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA), Chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, released the following statement today regarding the news that on Monday, President Obama will sign an Executive Order (EO) banning workplace discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) workers...

“Enough is enough: For 83 years, this handout to labor unions has meant that, rather than getting the job done for the lowest cost, taxpayers get charged extra on everything from building roads to painting buildings.” –Lamar Alexander Washington, D.C., July 17– U.S. Senator Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), the senior Republican on...

“[The Supreme Court’s decision] ought to have been a victory for everyone, if it is true in our country that when any American’s religious freedom is upheld, all of us benefit.” –Lamar Alexander  Washington, D.C., Jul 16 – U.S. Senator Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) said today that the Senate Democrats’...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA), Chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, released the following statement today after Senate Republicans obstructed consideration of theProtect Women’s Health from Corporate Interference Act, also known as the Not My Boss’s Business Act. Harkin...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Today, Senators Tom Harkin (D-IA), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), and Bob Casey (D-PA) introduced the Hide No Harm Act of 2014, a bill that would make it a crime for a corporate officer to knowingly conceal the fact that a corporate action or product poses a danger of death or serious physical injury to consumers and workers. The...

WASHINGTON, July 15 - U.S. Senators Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) today led a group of six Republicans on the Senate labor committee in a letter to U.S. Secretary of Labor Thomas Perez asking how the Department of Labor decided to mandate a wage hike at fast food restaurants at federal sites, including military bases. U.S. Military Exchange Service...

“We need to stop Washington from making it harder for governors to improve their public schools, raise standards, and recruit and keep good teachers.” –Lamar Alexander   Washington, D.C., July 11 – U.S. Senator Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), the senior Republican on the Senate education committee and former Tennessee...

  WASHINGTON, D.C.—Members of the U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, led by Chairman Tom Harkin (D-IA) and Ranking Member Lamar Alexander (R-TN), are pressing for answers following three separate incidents in which select agents were reportedly improperly handled, stored, or transferred by federal...