Labor commissioner race: Intriguing contrast in contenders
The race for labor commissioner of Georgia offers an intriguing contrast between incumbent Mark Butler, the first Republican to hold the office, and Democrat challenger Richard Keatley, an avowed progressive who left his university professorship to enter politics.
The Department of Labor administers the state’s unemployment insurance program and its employment service, plus provides workforce statistics and giving oversight to child labor issues. The agency also has a statewide network of career centers that give employment assistance to businesses and individuals.
Butler has been commissioner since 2011, the first Republican to head the labor department. He says, “We have reshaped the operations of the Labor Department to meet today’s demands. My goal is to continue to create valuable workforce solutions through strategic alliances and community relationships.” His team, Butler says, “has brought more technology upgrades to the Georgia Department of Labor than the four previous administrations combined,” and “will continue to improve our state’s technology” for even better service and bolster job recruiting efforts.
His goal “is to create valuable workforce solutions through strategic alliances and community relationships,” according to his website. Toward that objective, he has set up programs “to foster mutually beneficial relationships with Georgia’s employers and economic developers,” and to help unemployed and underemployed people “to better market themselves to employers.” A program called Customized Recruitment seeks to “bridge the gap between employers and job seekers,” a streamlined recruiting process available to newly located businesses. Other programs include weekend and after-hours job expos to help underemployed find better opportunities. Butler also credits his agency with helping Georgia break records for the number of jobs and people employed.
Democrat Keatley, a U.S. Navy veteran, was a language professor at Georgia State University until 2017 when he decided to jump into the crowded special election in the Sixth Congressional District to replace Tom Price, named the U.S. secretary of health by President Trump but forced to resign over using taxpayerfunded charter flights. Keatley managed 229 votes out of a total 192,569 in the primary that resulted in a runoff won by Karen Handel.
Far from discouraged, Keatley entered the race against Handel for a full term in this year’s election. But in February he changed his mind and entered the race for labor commissioner. This was his explanation per his website: “After consulting with friends, family and my campaign committee for the Georgia 6th District Congressional race, I recently decided the job of Georgia Labor Commissioner is better suited to my background and capabilities.”
Keatley won the Democratic nomination by narrowly defeating Fred Quinn, 30, a former intern with the Labor Department at the career center in Augusta, also a newcomer who polled 49 percent of the vote. Keatley’s platform includes “standing up against TRUMP for our entitlements including healthcare (ACA), social security and Medicare which the Republicans want to take away; fighting for the rights of veterans; creating jobs and opportunities for the citizens of our district including the ability of students to graduate from college without debt.” He also proposes “expanding and revitalizing our career centers.”
Keatley pledges to “fight against discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, religion, pregnancy, age, sexual orientation and gender identity and will appoint boards and advisory councils that are inclusive and representative of the diversity of Georgia.”
On the endorsement front, Butler has the support of the Georgia Chamber of Commerce as a strong pro-business candidate. Keatley has been endorsed by a lengthy list of labor organizations and a dozen elected officials and former Gov. Roy E. Barnes.
Contact Don Mckee at dmckee9613@aol.com.