Education and Workforce Committee Chairman Tim Walberg (R-MI) commented on the recent government shutdown, attributing it to Democratic actions in Congress. According to Walberg, House Republicans passed legislation nearly two weeks prior aimed at keeping the government open while lawmakers continued the appropriations process.
In his statement, Walberg said, “House Republicans did our job nearly two weeks ago and passed legislation that would keep our government open while Congress continues to work its way through the appropriations process.”
He continued, “Unfortunately, Democrats chose to shut down the government. As a result, veterans and service members could lose their jobs with nowhere to turn for help. No funding means no jobs data from BLS—leaving Americans and businesses in the dark about the economy. The EEOC would go dark—no investigations, no justice; workers could file complaints, but they’d be stranded without answers. Workers, unions, and employers would be left in limbo, with no referee for workplace disputes. Moms and young children would lose WIC nutrition support overnight—an imperfect program, but a vital one when families have nowhere else to turn. And new registered apprenticeships and federal job-training initiatives would be frozen—leaving only existing programs to limp along without oversight or support.
“America’s students, workers, and job creators deserve stability, not political gridlock that disrupts their futures.”
The shutdown affects several government services including employment data reporting by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), investigations by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), support for workplace disputes, nutrition assistance for women and children under WIC programs, as well as federal job training initiatives.
