Close up image of a caretaker helping older woman walk

The U.S. senate confirmed President Obama’s new NLRB nominees yesterday, fulfilling a bipartisan deal to avoid Democrat filibuster changes and resolve the NLRB’s recess appointee issue.

Nancy Shiffer, associate general counsel at the AFL-CIO, and Kent Hirozawa, chief counsel to NLRB chairman Mark Gaston Pearce will replace President Obama’s January 2012 appointees, Sharon Block and Richard Griffin.

Obama had renominated Block and Griffin in April for Senate approval. But a party-line committee vote demonstrated that Senate Republicans would not accept the two nominees as “a matter of principle,” Sen. Lama Alexander (R-TN), since the duo were originally recess appointments.

Democrats and Republicans met early this week to reach an agreement on new nominees. President Obama viewed the compromise as a sign of success.

Obama thanked the Senate leadership and Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) for having “worked together to find a path forward and give these nominees the votes they deserve.”