Senate Democrats Say DOGE’s Labor Cuts Will ‘Hurt Children’

In a letter led by Sen. Brian Schatz, Democratic senators are calling out DOGE’s cuts to the Bureau of International Labor Affairs for their effect on forced labor and child labor.

Brian Schatz

Sen. Brian Schatz leaves the Capitol after a vote. Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call via AP

After Elon Musk’s DOGE team terminated half a billion dollars in grants to combat child and slave labor, Sen. Brian Schatz is sounding the alarm.

In late March, according to The Washington Post, DOGE axed more than $500 million in allocated funding for the Bureau of International Labor Affairs to combat child labor around the globe. That cut is expected to end 69 programs addressing forced labor and child labor in over 40 countries.

On Tuesday, Schatz sent a letter to Secretary of Labor Lori Chavez-DeRemer calling out cuts that, Schatz and 11 other Democratic senators who signed the letter said, will “hurt children.”