On a 52-33 vote, Illinois labor attorney Craig Becker’s nomination to serve on the National Labor Relations Board failed, as expected.

This was a cloture vote to end debate, and not the actual nomination up or down.

Senate Democrats needed 60 votes. Among those voting no: the newest member, Sen. Scott Brown (R).

The AFL-CIO released this statement: “It is reprehensible that a minority in the U.S. Senate has blocked an up-or-down vote on Craig Becker, nominated seven months ago by President Obama to serve on the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). Once again, a Republican-led filibuster has put political interests over the needs of America’s working families. For more than two years, the NLRB has had only two of its five members. Without a fully staffed NLRB, working families face a major disadvantage in winning justice in the workplace.”