{"id":11376,"date":"2025-03-28T09:21:19","date_gmt":"2025-03-28T13:21:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/jordanbarab.com\/confinedspace\/?p=11376"},"modified":"2025-03-28T09:19:29","modified_gmt":"2025-03-28T13:19:29","slug":"an-open-letter-to-the-good-people-of-michigan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jordanbarab.com\/confinedspace\/2025\/03\/28\/an-open-letter-to-the-good-people-of-michigan\/","title":{"rendered":"An Open Letter to the Good People of Michigan"},"content":{"rendered":"

D<\/span>ear Michiganders:<\/p>\n

You have a beautiful state. Though I don\u2019t live there, I have friends who do, and I have had the pleasure of visiting many times.\u00a0 The Upper Peninsula is one of my favorite spots.\u00a0 And everyone I have met over the years has been friendly, welcoming, helpful, and hard working.<\/p>\n

So it saddened (actually horrified) me to learn that one of your elected congressional representatives, Tim Walberg, is no friend of working people in Michigan (or anywhere else for that matter). And he clearly is no friend of OSHA and other agencies within the Department of Labor that provide important oversight, enforcement, information, and resources related to worker health, safety, and wellbeing. <\/p>\n

And Tim Walberg isn\u2019t just any Congressman. He is not only the Dean of Michigan\u2019s House delegation (meaning he\u2019s been there the longest), but he is also Chairman of the powerful House Education and Workforce Committee. This is the Congressional committee that oversees all labor-related issues in the country, from OSHA to Wage and Hour issues to the National Labor Relations Board. And for good measure, the committee also handles all education issues. For good measure, he proudly<\/a> “holds the designation as Michigan’s most conservative Member of Congress, based on the American Conservative Union’s lifetime score.”<\/p>\n

\"Congress\"
Tim Walberg<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

And nothing about his resume is good for workers — or the workforce.<\/p>\n

Last week, Chairman Walberg sent a letter<\/a> to Secretary of Labor Lori Chavez-DeRemer urging her to withdraw or rescind regulations he deems unnecessary and burdensome.\u00a0 And says that by doing so, she would improve the lives of workers.<\/p>\n

Improve the lives of employers, maybe \u2013 but workers?\u00a0 No way.\u00a0 I put on my public health hat to tell you why.<\/p>\n

OSHA Regs on the Walberg\u2019s Chopping Block<\/strong><\/h2>\n

First up, he wants to rescind some existing OSHA rules. Just get rid of them.<\/p>\n