United States 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

Please help improve this article or section by expanding it. Further information might be found on the talk page or at requests for expansion. (July 2008)

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.

History

The U.S. Congress first established a Bureau of Labor in 1888 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.

Operating units

Department of Labor headquarters in Washington, D.C.

• Administrative Review Board (ARB)
• Benefits Review Board (BRB)
• Bureau of International Labor Affairs (ILAB)
• Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS)
• Center for Faith-Based and Community Initiatives (CFBCI)
• Employees' Compensation Appeals Board (ECAB)
• Employment Standards Administration (ESA)
  • Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP)
  • The Office of Labor-Management Standards (OLMS)
  • Office of Workers' Compensation Programs (OWCP)
  • Wage and Hour Division (WHD)
• Employment and Training Administration (ETA)
• Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA)
• Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)
• Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA)
• Veterans' Employment and Training Service (VETS)
• Women's Bureau (WB)
• Office of Inspector General (OIG)

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)

Related legislation

• 1931 - Davis-Bacon Act
• 1938 - Fair Labor Standards Act
• 1946 - Employment Act PL 79-304
• 1949 - Fair Labor Standards Amendment PL 81-393
• 1953 - Small Business Act PL 83-163
• 1954 - Internal Revenue Code PL 83-591
• 1955 - Fair Labor Standards Amendment PL 84-381
• 1958 - Small Business Administration extension PL 85-536
• 1961 - Fair Labor Standards Amendment PL 87-30
• 1961 - Area Redevelopment Act PL 87-27
• 1962 - Manpower Development and Training Act PL 87-415
• 1962 - Public Welfare Amendments PL 87-543
• 1963 - Amendments to National Defense Education Act PL 88-210
• 1964 - Economic Opportunity Act PL 88-452
• 1965 - Vocational Rehabilitation Act amended PL 89-333
• 1966 - Fair Labor Standards Amendment PL 89-601
• 1967 - Executive Order 11246
• 1973 - Comprehensive Employment and Training Act PL 93-203
• 1973 - Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act PL 93-112
• 1974 - Fair Labor Standards Amendment PL 93-259
• 1974 - Vietnam Era Veterans' Readjustment Assistance Act PL 92-540
• 1975 - Revenue Adjustment Act (Earned Income Tax Credit) PL 94-12, 164
• 1976 - Overhaul of vocational education programs PL 94-482
• 1976 - Social Security Act Amendments (Aid to Day Care Centers) PL 94-401
• 1977 - Fair Labor Standards Amendment PL 95-151
• 1978 - Full Employment and Balanced Growth Act PL 95-523
• 1981 - Budget Reconciliation Act PL 97-35
• 1982 - Job Training Partnership Act PL 97-300
• 1986 - Migrant And Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act PL 99-603
• 1988 - Family Support Act PL 100-485
• 1989 - Fair Labor Standards Amendment PL 101-157
• 1990 - Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act PL 101-508
• 1993 - Omnibus Budget Reconciliation and Bankruptcy Act PL 103-66
• 1996 - Small Business Job Protection Act PL 104-188
• 1996 - Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act PL 104-193
• 1996 - Veterans Employment Opportunities Act PL 105-339
• 1998 - Workforce Investment Act

See also

• Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
• National Labor Relations Board
• Ticket to Work SSA's Ticket to Work Program

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Department of Labor of the United States

• United States Department of Labor Official Website
• Labor Certification Tracker: A Labor Certification tracker that lets users share and discuss the details of their labor applications, reducing guesswork and making it easier to estimate processing times.
• Immigration links A list of frequently used links for employment-based immigrants.
• Department Of Labor Meeting Notices and Rule Changes from The Federal Register RSS Feed

References

This article does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unverifiable material may be challenged and removed. (July 2008)

v • d • e Agencies under the United States Department of Labor Secretary of Labor Deputy Secretary of Labor Administrative Review Board · Benefits Review Board · Bureau of International Labor Affairs · Bureau of Labor Statistics · Center for Faith-Based and Community Initiatives · Employees' Compensation Appeals Board · Employment Standards Administration · Employment and Training Administration · Mine Safety and Health Administration · Occupational Safety and Health Administration · Employee Benefits Security Administration · Veterans' Employment and Training Service · Women's Bureau