Debbie Berkowitz
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debbieberkowitz.bsky.social
Debbie Berkowitz
@debbieberkowitz.bsky.social
370 followers 62 following 110 posts
Worker safety policy expert. Former OSHA COS and Senior Policy Advisor 2009-2015. Fellow at Georgetown’s Kalmanovitz Initiative for Labor and the Working Poor.
Posts Replies Media Videos
Reposted by Debbie Berkowitz
geoffgarin.bsky.social
The vast majority of voters support the policies to restrict and restrain ICE that Democrats are demanding, and voters blame Republicans for the shutdown because of their unwillingness to support these essential changes.
February 13, 2026 at 8:40 PM
Reposted by Debbie Berkowitz
geoffgarin.bsky.social
Wrong, wrong, wrong.
February 13, 2026 at 4:18 AM
Reposted by Debbie Berkowitz
robertscotthorton.bsky.social
Jonathan V Last: "In 2023, the economy added 3 million jobs. In 2024, still under Biden, it added 2.2 million jobs. In 2025, under Trump, it added just 181,000 jobs. This is a story about an economy getting throttled by one man's capricious, destructive governance."
Shock Poll: Americans Miss Joe Biden’s Economy
Here’s what they’re worried about.
open.substack.com
February 11, 2026 at 10:51 PM
Reposted by Debbie Berkowitz
donmoyn.bsky.social
Career communications staff at the Dept of Labor were ignored and many resigned when a 21 year old starting posting white nationalist meme. Now he is going to DHS. This is who prospers under the clicktatorship.
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/11/u...
Homeland Security Hires Labor Dept. Aide Whose Posts Raised Alarms
www.nytimes.com
February 11, 2026 at 2:39 PM
Reposted by Debbie Berkowitz
jbarab.bsky.social
The Department of Labor's Inspector General warns that #OSHA enforcement staff is at an all-time low, threatening the health and lives of American workers. jordanbarab.com/confinedspac...
OSHA Enforcement Staff at Record Low: Inspector General - Confined Space
The DOL Inspector General has issued a report outlining serious challenges for OSHA and MSHA. Neither agency has enough inspectors.
jordanbarab.com
February 11, 2026 at 2:04 PM
Reposted by Debbie Berkowitz
deanbaker13.bsky.social
Trump's friend, Larry Ellison, is censoring TikTok to ban material Trump might not like paydayreport.com/tiktok-on-pa... Good thing we stood up to China!
TikTok on Payday’s Reporting Gets 21,000 Likes in Brasil, But Blocked by Trump Regs in U.S.
TikToks made in Brasil are now banned under new rules implemented by the Trump Administration.
paydayreport.com
February 11, 2026 at 2:27 AM
Reposted by Debbie Berkowitz
cljeharvard.bsky.social
Volkswagen workers' recent deal winning 20% raises and lower health care costs comes amid a precarious labor market. "If VW had [refused to negotiate] ... that would have been a very negative signal about this moment."

@sharblock.bsky.social in @axios.com
www.axios.com/2026/02/05/t...
Volkswagen workers' victory represents rare union breakthrough for South
Workers at Volkswagen's Chattanooga, Tenn., factory won 20% raises in their first UAW contract.
www.axios.com
February 9, 2026 at 3:40 PM
Reposted by Debbie Berkowitz
yahoonews.com
Elon Musk’s “Vegas Loop,” a network of underground tunnels to ferry passengers in Teslas, was under fresh scrutiny this week from Nevada lawmakers who raised concern about alleged workplace safety and environmental violations. yhoo.it/4tlHXpR
February 7, 2026 at 2:20 AM
debbieberkowitz.bsky.social
I loved reading his columns - a gem. All horrible.
February 4, 2026 at 11:05 PM
Reposted by Debbie Berkowitz
thetnholler.bsky.social
MINNESOTA — Mom goes outside to warm up her car, ICE grabs her: "Please, my car kids are all alone in the house!”

So nothing has changed and Homan was just to put a new face on the cruelty, got it

(H/T longtimehistory)
January 30, 2026 at 2:43 AM
Reposted by Debbie Berkowitz
pbump.com
Finally got around to a bit of research I'd been meaning to explore, and: There is no documented instance of an ICE officer being identified and assaulted while off duty because he wasn't masked. www.pbump.net/o/ices-excus...
ICE’s excuse for wearing masks has never actually manifested
There have been incidents of harassment and threats. But there are no apparent incidents in which identified ICE officers have been assaulted off-duty.
www.pbump.net
January 29, 2026 at 6:05 PM
debbieberkowitz.bsky.social
A new report honest DOL report on worker safety confirms that in the first six months of the Trump Administration the number of safety inspectors has fallen to the lowest numbers in the history of the agency. links-2.govdelivery.com/CL0/https:%2.... Worse than Trump1.0 : www.nelp.org/insights-res...
links-2.govdelivery.com
January 29, 2026 at 9:35 PM
Reposted by Debbie Berkowitz
jacobsoboroff.bsky.social
Streets of Minneapolis. www.youtube.com/watch?v=wWKS...
Bruce Springsteen - Streets Of Minneapolis (Official Audio)
YouTube video by Bruce Springsteen
www.youtube.com
January 28, 2026 at 7:23 PM
debbieberkowitz.bsky.social
www.washingtonpost.com/politics/202...
Trump tries — again — to deliver a winning message on affordability
The push comes after weeks of freewheeling speeches and international controversy that reflected Trump’s tendency to derail his own message.
www.washingtonpost.com
January 28, 2026 at 5:25 PM
Reposted by Debbie Berkowitz
pbump.com
Was on TV earlier, asked about Leavitt trying to distance Trump from the Pretti death and then about some of the other stories we've heard about immigration enforcement. (Sorry for the cruddy quality.)
January 27, 2026 at 1:51 AM
Reposted by Debbie Berkowitz
geoffgarin.bsky.social
In the list of MAGA liars who defamed Alex Pretti don’t forget Markwayne Mullin.
January 27, 2026 at 1:41 AM
Reposted by Debbie Berkowitz
schumer.senate.gov
Kristi Noem is a liar.

Kristi Noem is incompetent.

Kristi Noem is vicious.

Kristi Noem must be fired.
January 26, 2026 at 5:34 PM
Reposted by Debbie Berkowitz
stevevladeck.bsky.social
In today's @nytimes.com, @barryfriedman1.bsky.social and I argue that, with no *other* means of pursuing accountability for lawlessness by ICE, local/state prosecutions become not just legally viable, but necessary—both to punish past abuses and to deter future ones:

www.nytimes.com/2026/01/26/o...
Opinion | Local Prosecution Is the Answer to Federal Lawlessness
www.nytimes.com
January 26, 2026 at 11:56 AM
Reposted by Debbie Berkowitz
stevevladeck.bsky.social
This morning, I recorded a video on TikTok about why DHS’s arguments for the power to enter homes without judicial warrants in immigration cases are bunk.

Nine hours later, TikTok still says my video is “under review,” and can’t be shared.

Well, here’s a link:

georgetown.box.com/v/Vladeck-IC...
Screenshot of a TikTok video with error message at top saying “your video is under review and can’t be shared right now.”
January 26, 2026 at 2:00 AM
Reposted by Debbie Berkowitz
reichlinmelnick.bsky.social
You have to read this. Firsthand affidavit from one of the women who was there and recording the video. She talks about how Alex Pretti was directing traffic when she arrived. She watched him be killed in front of her. She's afraid to go home, worried she'll be arrested.
1. I am a resident of the Whittier neighborhood of Minneapolis, Minnesota. I am over 18 years of age. I am a children's entertainer who specializes in face painting. 2. On Saturday, January 24, 2026, at about 8:50 am, I was getting ready to go to work when I heard whistles outside. I knew the whistles meant that ICE agents were in the area, so I decided to check it out on my way to work. I've been involved in observing in my community because it is so important to document what ICE is doing to my neighbors. Connecting to your local community and knowing who your neighbors are is something I profoundly value. 3. I drove to Nicollet Ave. and 26th where I could hear the whistles coming from. I turned south onto Nicollet. There were already several ICE agents there and they'd set up a sort of vehicle convoy on Nicollet and 28th. There were also about 15 observers there, recording and observing ICE. 4. I saw ICE agents surrounding cars and punching car windows. I also saw them stopping vehicles further down Nicollet, so I backed up because I didn't feel safe continuing on. 5. I noticed a man sort of acting to help traffic move more smoothly. He helped me find a place to park. I got out with my whistle and my camera. I went over to him and said something like, "I'm going to film and use my whistle." 6. It seemed like most ICE activity was happening a little farther down the street from us, near 27th. Someone was being thrown to the ground. 7. I started recording. There was an agent by a car across the street. Two observers were a few feet away from the agent, blowing their whistles. One was wearing a backpack. 8. I and the man who was observing and helping direct traffic were standing in the street. There was a phone in the man's hand recording a video. 9. An agent approached and asked us to back up, so I moved slowly back onto the sidewalk. 10. The man stayed in the street, filming as the other observers I mentioned earlier were being forced backward by another ICE agent threatening them with pepper spray. The man went closer to support them as they got threatened, just with his camera out. I didn't see him reach for or hold a gun. 11. Then the ICE agent shoved one of the other observers to the ground. Then he started pepper spraying all three of them directly in the face and all over. The man with the phone put his hands above his head and the agent sprayed him again and pushed him. 12. Then the man tried to help up the woman the ICE agent had shoved to the ground. The ICE agents just kept spraying. More agents came over and grabbed the man who was still trying to help the woman get up. All three of the observers looked to have been badly affected by the pepper spray. I could feel the pepper spray in my eyes. 13. The agents pulled the man on the ground. I didn't see him touch any of them-he wasn't even turned toward them. It didn't look like he was trying to resist, just trying to help the woman up. I didn't see him with a gun. They threw him to the ground. Four or five agents had him on the ground and they just started shooting him. They shot him so many times. 14.1 don't know why they shot him. He was only helping. I was five feet from him and they just shot him. 15. The video I recorded of what happened accurately depicts the events leading up to the agents shooting him and several minutes afterwards. The video is attached as Exhibit 1. 16. I have read the statement from DHS about what happened and it is wrong. The man did not approach the agents with a gun. He approached them with a camera. He was just trying to help a woman get up and they took him to the ground. 17. I feel afraid. Only hours have passed since they shot a man right in front me and I don't feel like I can go home because I heard agents were looking for me. I don't know what the agents will do when they find me. I do know that they're not telling the truth about what happened. I've heard that other witnesses might have been arrested and taken to the Whipple Building. 18. I am disgusted and gutted at how they are treating my neighbors and my state. I keep alternating between crying and feeling determined it is important to remember the value of documenting injustice. We show up for the people who need us to bear witness, because it can't just be one group of people bearing the brunt of their tyranny. This is a struggle to protect our freedom and democracy, those things are on the line. He lost his life for those values. I declare under penalty of perjury that everything I have stated in this document is true and correct. Dated and signed on Jan 24, 2026 in Hennepin County, State of Minnesota.
January 25, 2026 at 1:15 AM
Reposted by Debbie Berkowitz
ezralevin.bsky.social
I do not just throw out praise for Senate Dem leadership, but this is good. It’s what we need now - Dems using their leverage where they’ve got it and refusing to budge. Make GOP own this lawless goon squad. No Dem votes for it. Support Dems who are fighting back now regardless of past beefs.
schumer.senate.gov Chuck Schumer @schumer.senate.gov · 20d
Senate Democrats will not provide the votes to proceed to the appropriations bill if the DHS funding bill is included.
January 25, 2026 at 12:32 AM
Reposted by Debbie Berkowitz
gregsargent.bsky.social
This is really something. Mark Warner, one of the more moderate and cautious senators in the Dem caucus, says he'll vote No on ICE funding:
January 25, 2026 at 12:30 AM
Reposted by Debbie Berkowitz
donmoyn.bsky.social
Alex Pretti was an ICU nurse serving veterans. He died trying to protect protestors being assaulted. A group of anonymous & masked men fired chemicals into his face, beat him, disarmed him, and shot him in broad daylight in front of witnesses. Then his government smeared him & defended his murder.
picture of Alex Pretti
January 24, 2026 at 11:44 PM
Reposted by Debbie Berkowitz
schumer.senate.gov
Senate Democrats will not provide the votes to proceed to the appropriations bill if the DHS funding bill is included.
January 24, 2026 at 11:53 PM