@theameilee.bsky.social nails it: when exploitation is profitable, even the good companies lose. That’s why it’s on governments to build markets that don’t profit from abuse. 🎧 Listen to how smarter trade policy can level the playing field—and make decency a competitive advantage. ➡️ buff.ly/WiTrMxA

Check out @pitchforkeconomics.bsky.social new podcast on trade policy!

Worth reading. Terrifying moment.

It’s official. We are being governed by a spoiled brat who cannot tolerate bad news and will attempt to dismantle a skilled government agency to hide the outcomes of his pathetic policy blunders. Luckily, the excellent career staff at BLS will provide integrity as long as they can.

Many thanks to Senators Cortez Masto and Lujan for convening an important conversation on Trump's trade and economic policies and how they are impacting American households, workers, and small businesses. www.youtube.com/live/GSOz6a9...

Looking forward to joining @lujan.senate.gov, Senator Catherine Cortez Masto, and @adamposen.bsky.social tomorrow (6/10) at 1:30 for Spotlight Forum on Trump's trade policies. It will stream on Facebook Live: www.facebook.com/events/73835...

Happy 105th birthday to the mighty and essential @dol.gov Women’s Bureau! Let’s double down and fund this important work, not gut it! #savewb

Hey, I was looking for the X/Twitter account for my former DOL agency, @ilab.dol.gov (International Labor Affairs Bureau). It seems to have mysteriously disappeared. What the heck?? The agency still exists! People are still doing amazing work.

If you’re in DC, come by the Department of Labor tomorrow (5/28) at noon, 200 Constitution Ave steps! Support American workers and the dedicated DOL career staff!

Powerful op-ed by George Saunders on the firing of our librarian of Congress: “Shame on all of us if we let these ignorant purveyors of cruelty reduce this beautiful thing we’ve built over these hundreds of years to a hollow, braying, anti-version of itself “ www.nytimes.com/2025/05/13/o...

Glad to join @deluzio.house.gov, Gil Kaplan, and @stevenoverly.bsky.social for a great discussion at the #PoliticoTrade event. x.com/i/broadcasts...

During my time in govt, our Dept of Labor lawyers were super strict about gifts from foreign governments: nothing over $480, and even small gifts had to be cleared. Every scarf, platter, and keychain was approved by the ethics lawyers. This is appalling. www.nytimes.com/2025/05/11/u...

This is a generational moment. Every time labor has been knocked down, we get back up stronger than before. Throughout the first 100 days of the Trump admin, America’s unions have been relentlessly fighting back against the billionaire takeover, and we’re winning.

Check out this excellent @newyorker.com article about the bumblng and self-defeating attempts by this administration to destroy DOL's international labor work -- and the staff, who are continuing to speak out despite the illegal threats against them. Worth a read! www.newyorker.com/news/deep-st...

OUT NOW: The Tariffs 101 episode you need! Economist @theameilee.bsky.social provides insight into Trump’s economic madness and explains what actual strategies in support of American workers and people of color could look like. Listen now! democracyincolor.com/podepisodes/...

We’re fighting back! US labor groups sue over ‘ignorant’ cuts of programs fighting child labor abroad

Join this great webinar April 16 at 8:15 pm ET on Litigating Against DOGE! With @RepRaskin @SkyePerryman @LizShuler and others. ula-aflcio.glueup.com/en/organizat...

The Trump administration's attacks on immigrant workers don’t just harm individual families—they undermine the care economy we all depend on. From child care to nursing homes, losing them means longer waits, higher costs, and a nation that fails its most vulnerable.

What’s the point of bringing jobs back to the United States if the administration is openly destroying unions, dismantling worker safety and wage and hour protections, and gutting child labor laws? Asking for a friend.

Today is the Hands Off protest in DC and around the country! I’ll be there. The only challenge is how to fit everything I want to say onto a two-sided posterboard. I got a big one!

Elon Musk has apparently declared war on worker safety. In addition to destroying NIOSH, Musk's DOGE team is trying to close 11 OSHA offices. Ostensibly to save a small amount of money, this will disrupt the functioning of under-resourced offices, resulting in more injuries, illnesses and deaths.

Why cuts to @ILAB_DOL are a horrible idea....by Fairtrade America, the International Cocoa Initiative and The Rainforest Alliance.... #ChildLabor @alt-dol.altgov.info @theameilee.bsky.social cocoaradar.com/us-cuts-to-c...

New from @JulieSuLabor @tcfdotorg : Musk and DOGE are gutting @USDOL’s ILAB, which stops international companies from undercutting American workers by crushing worker rights and using forced and child labor. tcf.org/content/repo...

The cuts announced last week to ALL of the Department of Labor's international programs are both ignorant and self-defeating. Thanks to Julie Su and Katherine Tai for their excellent article in The American Prospect. prospect.org/labor/2025-0...

Another short-sighted and self-defeating move from DOGE. American workers and businesses can’t thrive in a global economy where workers’ rights are trampled and disrespected. Https://www.yahoo.com/news/stain-humanity-canceled-ilab-grants-192842737.html

Exciting news for @thewirechina.bsky.social: our first ebook! 'Broken Engagement' by former WSJ senior editor @bobdavis187.bsky.social. It's a collection of terrific interviews with the US policy makers who have shaped China policy under 6 presidents. Enjoy! www.amazon.com/Broken-Engag...

Check out new e-book by @bobdavis187 on China policy across six administrations, including an interview with me outlining the evolution of China policy with respect to labor rights. Bob's thoughtful and probing questions create a complex and engaging read.

Sorry to see that the Trump administration has lifted the Withhold Release Order on sugar from Central Romana. The labor abuses in that sector are egregious and systemic. Note that the Fanjul corporation donated $1m last year to MAGA PAC. Odd coincidence.

Looking forward to speaking at the @sourcingjournal Sustainability Summit on March 19 at Tribeca Rooftop in NYC. Follow the event at #SJSummits hashtag, and learn more here: www.events.sourcingjournal.com/sustainabili...

Dr. Adriane Fugh-Berman: RFK Jr.'s immunity to scientific evidence is dangerous triblive.com/opinion/dr-a...

Great spirited demo in support of USAID this morning at the Capitol.

These billionaire boy toys and tech bros think they can “fix” policies they don’t like with a bulldozer, but in fact it takes some actual thought, hard work, and a scalpel.

Hunkered down with popcorn and old movies today.

Happy Martin Luther King Junior Day, on this icy cold morning in Washington. A little inspiration for today: “Change does not roll in on the wheels of inevitability, but comes through continuous struggle. And so we must straighten our backs and work for freedom.” Let’s go!

“Unions are the backbone of democracy, and that is one of the reasons we have invested in strengthening independent worker organizations. ” Thea Lee Deputy Undersecretary for International Affairs

It has been my honor to serve as Deputy Undersecretary for International Affairs at the @ILAB_DOL @USDOL. We are proud of all we accomplished in 3.5 short years! blog.dol.gov/2025/01/13/a...