Deputy Labor Secretary Julie Su, who President Joe Biden nominated to replace Labor Secretary Marty Walsh, will defend her previous support of a controversial law in California that cracked down on freelancers as she seeks confirmation in the Senate.
California Assembly Bill 5 entered into effect last year after a prolonged series of court battles, inducing protests from owner-operator truckers and a subsequent rebuke from the state government to “move forward” and “comply with the law.”
The statute said that workers are often “exploited” through their classification as independent contractors; some 16% of Americans have nevertheless completed independent contracting work, according to a survey from Pew Research, which noted that many enjoy the flexibility such arrangements provide.