Press Releases
Committee Sends Bill to Floor that Weakens Overtime Pay, 40-Hour Workweek
04.17.13 WASHINGTON - The House Education and the Workforce Committee today pushed through a bill (H.R. 1406) on a partisan vote that would force working families to make an unnecessary choice between overtime pay they rely on and time off they need to meet family obligations. The bill is expected to receive full consideration in the House of Representatives in the coming weeks. “This bill is really about working more and getting less at the end of the week,” said Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.), the s… Continue Reading
Urgent Congressional Action is needed to Stop Student Loan Interest Rates from Doubling, Witnesses Tell Education Panel
04.16.13 WASHINGTON - Witnesses told a House Education subcommittee today that urgent congressional action is needed to stop student loan interest rates from doubling. Testimony also emphasized that continued federal investment in financial aid programs is key to enriching individual economic success, building a strong state economy, and developing a competitive workforce. "Landmark investments in federal higher education programs have improved the lives of low-income and middle income students and wor… Continue Reading
House GOP Votes to Weaken Middle Class Families, Again
04.12.13 WASHINGTON -- House Republicans voted to weaken the nation’s middle class and working families by stopping the enforcement of the nation’s labor laws on a 219 to 209 vote today. This latest bill after two years of attempts to weaken workers’ rights, H.R. 1120, would stop the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) from issuing decisions or rulings on workplace disputes between workers and businesses. Democrats offered a final amendment to the bill that would have protected veterans' rights on the… Continue Reading
GOP to Advance Bill Undermining American Workers’ Overtime Pay, House Subcommittee Learns Today
04.11.13 WASHINGTON - A Republican bill expected to make its way through the House of Representatives would force an unnecessary choice between overtime pay that workers rely on and time off that they may never be able to take advantage of, the Workforce Protections Subcommittee learned today. "This legislation is based on smoke and mirrors. It pretends to offer the time off people need when they need it, but in fact, it is a pay cut for workers without any attendant guarantee of time," said Judith Lich… Continue Reading
Students Deserve a 21st-century Education: News of the Day
04.11.13 WASHINGTON - Today, Politico published a joint op-ed by Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.), the senior Democrat on the House Education and the Workforce Committee, and Bob Wise, president of the Alliance for Excellent Education and former governor of West Virginia, on the need for greater investment in education technology. In February, Miller introduced the Transforming Education through Technology Act that would require states and school districts to develop plans and policies that put the best te… Continue Reading
Miller Statement on President Obama’s 2014 Education Budget
04.10.13 WASHINGTON - U.S. Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.), the senior Democrat on the House Education and the Workforce Committee, released the following statement today on President Obama's education budget for Fiscal Year 2014: "Today, President Obama presented a responsible proposal for education that will continue to rebuild our economy, strengthen the middle class, and make education a top priority," said Rep. Miller. "While pressing for a balanced approach to deficit reduction, the President contin… Continue Reading
Federal Investment in STEM Education Essential to Boosting U.S. Competitiveness, Witnesses Tell Education Panel
04.10.13 WASHINGTON - Witnesses told a House Education subcommittee today that continued federal investment in science, technology, engineering and math education (STEM) is needed to bolster U.S. competitiveness in a global workforce. The Department of Commerce projects that, between 2008 and 2018, STEM career fields will grow at double the rate than that of other fields. "STEM education is a worthwhile investment that Congress must consider furthering," said Rep. Carolyn McCarthy, the senior Democrat o… Continue Reading
Rep. Miller Statement on Meeting with Survivor of Bangladesh’s Tazreen Factory Fire and other Human Rights Leaders
04.10.13 WASHINGTON - Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.), the senior Democrat on the House Education and the Workforce Committee, issued the following statement today after meeting with a survivor of the Tazreen factory fire and other human rights leaders. Rep. Miller met with Sumi Abedin, a survivor of the Tazreen fire in Bangladesh that killed 112 workers in November 2012, Kalpona Akter, the executive director of the Bangladesh Center for Worker Solidarity, and other international workers' rights leaders. … Continue Reading
Nominations to NLRB Deserve Swift Up-or-Down Vote, says Rep. Miller
04.09.13 WASHINGTON - Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.), the senior Democrat on the House Education and the Workforce Committee, issued the following statement on President Obama’s nominations to the National Labor Relations Board. “President Obama has announced a full slate of nominees from both sides of the aisle to the National Labor Relations Board. This agency is critical to workers, employers and the economy as a whole. Yet, over the last four years, it has been subject to all manner of obstruction… Continue Reading
Restore the Promise of Equal Pay for Equal Work, says Rep. George Miller
04.09.13 WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.), the senior Democrat on the House Education and the Workforce Committee, issued the following statement today on Equal Pay Day. Each year, National Equal Pay Day reflects how far into the current year women must work to match what men earned in the previous year. Today, the typical American woman working full time is paid only 77 cents for every dollar paid to her male counterpart, according to U.S. Census data. This earnings gap translates t… Continue Reading
Inaction on Mine Safety Is Shameful, say Reps. Miller and Courtney on 3rd Anniversary of Upper Big Branch Tragedy
04.05.13 WASHINGTON - Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.), the senior Democratic member of the House Education and the Workforce Committee, and Joe Courtney (D-Conn.), the ranking member of the Workforce Protections Subcommittee, issued the following statement today on the third anniversary of the Upper Big Branch mine explosion in Montcoal, W. Va. "Three years ago, 29 miners' lives were taken in an entirely senseless and preventable tragedy at the Upper Big Branch mine. While many on Capitol Hill have turned… Continue Reading
GAO Uncovers Troubling Practices Carried Out by Financial Firms That Drain Americans’ 401(k) Retirement Savings in Report
04.03.13 WASHINGTON, D.C. - America’s workers are often presented with false and misleading information regarding fees and their options on what to do with their 401(k) assets when they leave an employer, according to a Government Accountability Office (GAO) investigation released today by Rep. George Miller (D-CA), Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA), Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL). Following the release of the report, Miller, Harkin, and Nelson called on the Departments of Labor (DOL) and Treasury to act on GAO’s recom… Continue Reading
Cablevision Case Highlight Hurdles in Negotiating First Contracts, Committee Democrats Learn at Brooklyn Forum
03.25.13 BROOKLYN, NY - As the Cablevision fight in New York suggests, significant hurdles exist for workers in achieving a first collective bargaining contract when an employer is intent on subverting the wishes of workers, presenters told Democratic members of the House Education and the Workforce congressional committee in Brooklyn today. "Good labor relations promotes job growth. Bargaining in good faith promotes good labor relations. When there isn't good faith bargaining, we need a legal … Continue Reading
House Democrats Reintroduce Miner Safety Reforms
03.21.13 WASHINGTON - House Democrats reintroduced legislation today to bring the nation's mine health and safety laws up to date, give mine safety officials the ability to effectively investigate and shut down habitually dangerous mines, and hold mine operators accountable for putting their workers in unnecessary danger. The Robert C. Byrd Mine Safety Protection Act of 2013 is similar to legislation introduced in 2011. "It's been almost three years since the Upper Big Branch mine explosion. After numer… Continue Reading
Rerun: House Labor Committee GOP Pushes Through Bill Attacking Americans’ Rights That Will Go Nowhere
03.20.13 WASHINGTON - House Republicans in the Education and the Workforce Committee today pushed through a bill that would create great uncertainty by not allowing final adjudications on workplace disputes and union elections. "This bill is a frontal assault on collective bargaining in this country," said Rep. Rob Andrews (D-NJ), the senior Democratic member of the Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions Subcommittee. "The outrage from the Republicans is all about politics, not about so-called uncertai… Continue Reading
Rep. George Miller Statement on Nomination of Thomas Perez as Secretary of Labor
03.18.13 WASHINGTON - U.S. Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.), the senior Democratic member of the House Education and the Workforce Committee, issued the following statement today after President Obama nominated Assistant Attorney General Thomas Perez to be the next U.S. Secretary of Labor. "I applaud President Obama's nomination of Tom Perez to be the next Secretary of Labor. Mr. Perez has had an accomplished career fighting for the fundamental rights of all Americans. As we work to build a fair and sustai… Continue Reading
ROCKEFELLER, MILLER, MANCHIN, RAHALL CALL ON DOL TO MAINTAIN FOCUS ON MINE SAFETY CASES
03.17.13 WASHINGTON, D.C. - Senator Jay Rockefeller, Congressman George Miller, Senator Joe Manchin, and Congressman Nick Rahall today announced that they are pushing the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) to maintain a strong focus on mine safety as the agency considers spending cuts. In a letter to DOL's Acting Secretary, the Members pushed back on DOL's sequestration plans that would disproportionately cut the Solicitor of Labor's efforts to reduce the backlog of appeals at the Federal Mine Safety and He… Continue Reading
House GOP Unanimously Votes Against Increasing Minimum Wage
03.15.13 WASHINGTON - Today, House Republicans voted unanimously against raising the nation’s minimum wage to $10.10 per hour by 2015. The vote came as part of a final amendment to a bill that would harm access to job training and education programs for low-income Americans. The minimum wage amendment failed on a 184 to 233 vote, with all 227 Republican members voting ‘no’. “Even while corporate profits soar and the stock market reaches new highs, the working poor continue to fall further and furthe… Continue Reading
Miller Statement on New CFPB Rule to Supervise Nonbank Student Loan Servicers
03.15.13 WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Rep. George Miller (D-CA), the senior Democrat on the House Education and the Workforce Committee, issued the following statement after the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau announced today proposed regulations to oversee nonbank student loan servicers. Under the new proposed rule, CFPB will be able to view the complete cycle of private student loan debt, from origination through servicing to debt collection and credit reporting. At a time when total student loan debt… Continue Reading
Miller: GOP WIA Bill Puts Ideology over Practical Solutions and Evidence-Based Reforms
03.15.13 WASHINGTON-The following are the prepared remarks of Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.), the senior Democratic member of the House Education and the Workforce Committee, on this morning's debate on the House Republican's bill to gut the nation's workforce investment and training system, H.R. 803. Click here for more on the bill. *** Mr. Speaker, the House meets today to consider Republican legislation that reauthorizes the Workforce Investment Act. Rewriting the Workforce Investment Act is an imp… Continue Reading