Christopher J. Williamson, Nominee for Assistant Secretary for MSHA

On Friday, November 12, 2021, President Joe Biden announced his intent to nominate Christopher J. Williamson as the agency’s nominee as the MSHA Assistant Secretary.
 
A proud Appalachian and native of the coalfields of southern West Virginia, Christopher J. Williamson currently serves as Senior Counsel to Chairman Lauren McFerran of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). Prior to joining the NLRB, he served in the Obama-Biden Administration at the U.S. Department of Labor as a member of the senior leadership team at the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA). In that role, he advised the Assistant Secretary for MSHA on all aspects of agency policy, operations, and communications. Before his service at MSHA, Williamson worked in the United States Senate as Labor Counsel to Chairman Tom Harkin on the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee and as a Legislative Assistant to Senator Joe Manchin III. As Labor Counsel, he advised Chairman Harkin and Committee Members on labor, occupational and mine safety and health, and black lung benefits and other workers’ compensation issues. Serving on Senator Manchin’s Legislative Team, Williamson was the Senator’s primary policy advisor on labor, mine safety and health, pensions, and agriculture issues and also advised him on energy and environmental policy, including Senator Manchin’s work on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee.