Strong NLRB Nominees Face Big Obstacles from Senate Republicans

President Obama has nominated two candidates with strong workers' rights backgrounds to fill vacancies on the National Labor Relations Board, but Senate Republicans remain a giant hurdle to their approval.

Sharon Block, whose career includes working for the late Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) on the Senate's Health, Education, Labor and Pension Committee, is currently deputy assistant secretary for congressional affairs at the U.S. Department of Labor.

Richard Griffin is general counsel for the International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE) and serves on the board of directors for the AFL-CIO Lawyers Coordinating Committee.

Filling at least one seat is urgent in order to maintain a quorum on the five-seat NLRB. Currently only three seats are filled, and member Craig Becker's term expires at the end of this month. 

If the Senate fails to approve at least one of the nominees by Dec. 31, the board's remaining two members won't have the legal authority to proceed with what is already a large backlog of workers' rights cases.

CWA and other unions are urging the Senate to confirm the nominees swiftly, but are bracing for Senate Republicans to continue their campaign of obstruction. Because the Senate must have 60 votes rather than a simple majority to accomplish anything, Republicans were able to block an earlier NLRB nominee and have stalled scores of other critical Obama appointments.