Gov.-elect Abigail Spanberger (D-VA) tapped a former Biden administration Labor Department leader to head the Virginia Labor Department.
Jessica Looman, the former administrator of the Labor Department’s Wage and Hour Division under President Joe Biden, will serve as the state’s next secretary of labor if confirmed by the General Assembly.
“As Secretary of Labor, Ms. Looman will drive my administration’s mission to equip Virginians with the skills and education they need to build steady, rewarding careers — and power Virginia’s economy into the future,” Spanberger said in a statement.
Spanberger touted Looman’s union background in her announcement.
“Ms. Looman has extensive experience supporting workers and fostering economic growth at the local, state, and federal levels. As a proud member of the Laborers’ International Union of North America, she understands how important it is to uphold workforce protections and prepare our citizens for both the jobs of today and tomorrow,” Spanberger said.
Looman’s appointment comes at a time when Virginia’s right-to-work law is at the center of a Democratic policy debate, with some Democrats pushing for reforms to the law that could allow workplaces to require union fees from workers to fall under union contracts; others disagree with a full repeal.
Spanberger told ABC8 that she does not believe in a full repeal of the right-to-work law, but she could see a path for reforming the law.
The Biden administration touted the Wage and Hour Division’s work in recovering $1 billion in back wages and damages for workers under Looman’s term toward the end of their administration. Looman, in Spanberger’s press release on her nomination, highlighted her work in enforcing minimum wage and overtime protections, as well as thwarting child labor in the United States.
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“I am honored to be nominated by Governor-elect Spanberger to serve as Virginia’s third Secretary of Labor, and I look forward to working with the Commonwealth’s workforce protection and development agencies to improve economic opportunity and security for Virginia’s workers,” Looman said in a statement.
“I share Governor-elect Spanberger’s vision that both investing in the creation of good jobs and protecting workers are essential to sustaining the Commonwealth’s economic growth and shared prosperity,” Looman said.