President Obama’s recess appointment of nominee Craig Becker to the National Labor Relations Board has drawn objections from industry groups and praise from labor unions. Becker, associate general counsel for the AFL-CIO and Service Employees International Union, was one of 15 recess appointments Obama announced on March 27. Democrat Mark Pearce, another longtime union attorney, received a recess appointment to the NLRB, too.

Also on Obama’s list is Rafael Borras, a vice president in URS Corp.’s mid-Atlantic region. He was named Dept. of Homeland Security undersecretary for management.

The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee approved Becker on Feb. 4. However, Senate Republicans blocked Becker’s nomination on the floor. In October, the panel had cleared Pearce and Brian Hayes, Obama’s Republican nominee to the board. Hayes did not receive a recess appointment. All 41 Republican senators and such business groups as the Associated Builders and Contractors and Associated General Contractors criticized Becker’s recess appointment. But HELP Committee Chairman Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) and the laborers’ union were among those who hailed Obama’s decision to put Becker on the board.