United States Department of Labor

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United States
Department of Labor
Seal of the Department of Labor
Seal of the Department of Labor
Agency overview
Formed March 4, 1913
Employees 17,347 (2004)
Annual Budget $59.7 billion (2004)
Agency Executives Elaine L. Chao, Secretary
 
Howard M. Radzely, Deputy Secretary
Website
www.dol.gov

The United States Department of Labor is a Cabinet department of the United States government responsible for occupational safety, wage and hour standards, unemployment insurance benefits, re-employment services, and some economic statistics. Many U.S. states also have such departments. The department is headed by the United States Secretary of Labor.

Contents

[edit] History

In the words of the original act, the Department's purpose is "to foster, promote and develop the welfare of working people, to improve their working conditions, and to enhance their opportunities for profitable employment."

The U.S. Congress first established a Bureau of Labor in 1884 under the Department of the Interior. Later, the Bureau of Labor became an independent Department of Labor but lacked executive rank. It became a bureau again within the Department of Commerce and Labor, which was established February 14, 1903. President William Howard Taft signed on March 4, 1913 the bill establishing the Department of Labor as a Cabinet-level Department.

President Lyndon Johnson asked Congress to consider the idea of reuniting Commerce and Labor.[citation needed] He argued that the two departments had similar goals and that they would have more efficient channels of communication in a single department. However, Congress never acted on it.

[edit] Operating units

Department of Labor headquarters in Washington, D.C.
Department of Labor headquarters in Washington, D.C.

Other organizational units within the Department:

  • Presidential Task Force on Employment of Adults With Disabilities (PTFEAD)
  • Office of Administrative Law Judges (OALJ)
  • Office of Congressional & Intergovernmental Affairs (OCIA)
  • Office of the Assistant Secretary for Administration and Management (OASAM)
  • Office of the Assistant Secretary for Policy (OASP)
  • Office of the Chief Financial Officer (OCFO)
  • Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO)
  • Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP)
  • Office of Small business Programs (OSBP)
  • Office of the Solicitor (SOL)
  • Office of the Secretary (OSEC)
  • Office of the 21st Century Workforce (21CW)

[edit] Related legislation

[edit] External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

[edit] References

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United States federal executive departments
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Agencies under the United States Department of Labor
Secretary of Labor
Deputy Secretary of Labor United States Department of Labor Seal