On a 51-48 vote, the U.S. Senate confirmed Democrat Gwynne Wilcox to her second five-year term on the National Labor Relations Board. Both Sen. Lisa Murkowski and Sen. Dan Sullivan of Alaska, were the only Republicans to vote in favor. In a separate procedural vote, her confirmation was sealed 51-48, with only Murkowski and Sullivan voting with democrats, as West Virginia’s Sen. Joe Manchin, a Democrat, voted against Wilcox, and Democrat Sen. Cory Booker was absent.
The vote gives 15 more months to the board’s Democratic majority that hears unfair labor practice cases brought by unions, and also has oversight for union elections.
Wilcox’s confirmation maintains a 3-1 advantage that Democrats have on the board. President Joe Biden has not named a Republican to fill the Republican seat that has been vacant since last year, and he appears to be in no hurry to do so.
Murkowski told Bloomberg News that she had assurances from the White House that a candidate to fill the Republican vacancy at the NLRB has been sent to the White House and will receive Senate consideration.
