As the first year of the Biden administration nears an end, we see more clearly now the administration’s priorities and goals on all fronts – especially on workplace safety and health.
It’s hard to recall another year where the Department of Labor and its workplace safety and health regulators – the Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) and Mine Safety & Health Administration (MSHA) – were more in the national spotlight. The COVID-19 pandemic and the continued push-pull over how it will – or will not – be regulated spurred this attention, and it is unlikely that interest will wane anytime soon.
Still, the pandemic was not the only area of focus for the agencies. Now that the administration’s first year is about complete, let’s look back on what transpired to help us prepare for what OSHA and MSHA will concentrate on in the coming year.
Leadership
It is not uncommon for OSHA and MSHA to be without presidentially-nominated and Senate-confirmed assistant secretaries to lead each agency in the first year after an election.
The confirmation process takes time, as does selecting the nominees. In this interim period, we see another presidential nominee installed in the “acting” assistant secretary roles, which do not require confirmation. While the acting assistant secretaries oversee the agencies and help set regulatory priorities, we often see more subtle changes and/or a continuation of normal operations for the agencies. With a confirmed assistant secretary, we often experience more robust changes at the agencies and the administration’s vision come into focus.
What is uncommon is what took place with OSHA for the entirety of the Trump administration, when OSHA remained without a confirmed assistant secretary from January 2017 – when then assistant secretary David Michaels resigned – until Oct. 25, 2021 – when the Senate confirmed Biden administration assistant secretary Doug Parker.
Parker most recently served as head of California’s Division of Occupational Safety & Health, which is one of the most aggressive workplace safety regulators in the country. Before that, Parker spent time as a staff attorney for the United Mine Workers of America (UMWA), and he worked at MSHA under the Obama administration.
Parker’s experience and track record show that he is an ardent supporter of workers’ rights and a harsh critic of employers in safety and health matters. Parker’s confirmation is likely a significant step toward a more aggressive OSHA in the coming years.
On the contrary, assistant secretary David Zatezalo led MSHA for almost the entirety of the Trump administration. He was confirmed as assistant secretary late in 2017.
Since the Biden administration took office, there was little chatter regarding potential candidates for the assistant secretary position at MSHA. Jeannette Galanis was quickly appointed as the acting assistant secretary and held the role for most of 2020, but it was revealed Nov. 12 that the White House named a nominee for the position. Christopher Williamson was selected as the nominee to lead MSHA.
Williamson, like Parker and Galanis, spent time at MSHA under the Obama administration. Williamson also worked for the Federal Mine Safety & Health Review Commission – the body that hears disputes between MSHA and employers. He also spent time on Capitol Hill with Sen. Joe Manchin (D-West Virginia) and as labor counsel to former Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) on the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions. Most recently, Williamson served as senior counsel to National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) chair Lauren McFerran.
Williamson is well connected to some very influential people in Washington who are pro-labor, and he has quickly received the public endorsement of UMWA. His time at MSHA was with then-assistant secretary Joe Main, who led an aggressive, enforcement-driven agency. If confirmed, it is likely Williamson will be a similar presence at MSHA.