| Political Digest Online |
| The Spirit of the Republic |
The Department of Labor would receive $12.1 billion in discretionary funding in the proposed 2014 budget, an increase of $100 million from that proposed for 2013, money the White House said will help unemployed workers gain skills to find new jobs.
Read full article >>
     |
East Room
11:47 A.M. EDT
THE PRESIDENT: Thank you. (Applause.) Everybody have a seat. Have a seat. As I’ve said before, my top priority as President is doing everything we need to do to make sure that we’re growing our economy and that we’re strengthening our middle class. And as I said in my State of the Union address last month, every day we should be asking ourselves three questions. One -- how do we make sure America is a magnet for good jobs? Number two -- how do we equip people with the skills they need to get those jobs? And number three -- how do we make sure that hard work actually pays off in a decent living?
These are the challenges that I’ve instructed my team here at the White House and in my entire Cabinet to focus on. And a position that’s instrumental to tackling these challenges is having an outstanding Secretary of Labor.
So I want to begin by thanking Hilda Solis and her entire team -- (applause) -- including Acting Secretary Seth Harris -- (applause) -- for the outstanding work that they’ve been doing over the past four years. Their efforts at the Department of Labor have given more young people a chance to earn new skills, more returning vets the chance to find a job. They’ve looked out for worker safety from construction sites to coal mines. They’ve stood up for workers’ rights to organize, women’s rights to get paid equally for the work that they do. They’ve done an extraordinary job fighting on behalf of working families across the board.
And today, I’m proud to nominate a leader to carry on those efforts as America’s next Secretary of Labor -- Tom Perez. (Applause.)
Like so many Americans, Tom knows what it’s like to climb the ladder of opportunity. He is the son of Dominican immigrants. He helped pay his way through college as a garbage collector and working at a warehouse. He went on to become the first lawyer in his family. So his story reminds us of this country’s promise, that if you’re willing to work hard, it doesn’t matter who you are, where you come from, what your last name is -- you can make it if you try.
And Tom has made protecting that promise -- for everybody -- the cause of his life. As a civil rights attorney, an aide to Senator Ted Kennedy, a member of the Montgomery, Maryland County Council, Tom fought for a level playing field where hard work and responsibility are rewarded and working families can get ahead.
And this is not the first time that he’s chosen to be a labor secretary, either. We’ve got here today Governor Martin O’Malley, and Martin appointed Tom as Secretary of Maryland’s Department of Labor, where he helped implement the country’s first statewide living-wage law, because he understood that a minimum wage should be a wage that you can live on.
In his current role as the head of the U.S. Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, Tom has fought to open pathways into the workforce for everyone willing to contribute, including people with disabilities, LGBT Americans, and immigrants. And he has helped settle some of the largest cases ever on behalf of families targeted by unfair mortgage lending.
Now, while he’s tackled plenty of tough issues, Tom has also spent a career as a consensus-builder. He’s worked with CEOs, he's worked with labor leaders. He's worked at federal, state, and local government levels. And throughout, he understands that our economy works best when the middle class and those working to get into the middle class have the security they need on the job, a democratic voice in the workplace, everybody playing by the same set of rules.
So Tom’s knowledge and experience will make him an outstanding Secretary of Labor. And there’s plenty of work to do. We're going to have to work very hard to make sure that folks find jobs with good wages and good benefits. We've got to make sure that our veterans who are returning home from Iraq and Afghanistan have a chance to put their incredible skills and leadership to work at home. We need to build an immigration system that works for every employee and every family and every business. I'm confident that Tom is going to be able to work to promote economic growth, but also make sure that that growth is broad-based. And he's going to be an integral part of our overall economic team.
So these are just a few of the many challenges working families out there are facing and where they need an advocate, and Tom is the right person for that job. So I hope that the Senate will act swiftly to confirm Tom so we can work together to address all these concerns. I want to thank not only Tom but his wonderful family for agreeing to take on this new role. I just heard that Tom has been coaching basketball and baseball. He doesn’t claim to be a great coach -- (laughter) -- but he brings passion to it. He may end up missing a few of the games over the next several months, but it's going to be for a good cause. And I appreciate his family being willing to make these sacrifices as well.
So with that, I would like to introduce my nominee to be our next Secretary of Labor, give him a chance to say a few words. And, again, I'd urge the Senate to confirm him as quickly as possible.
Mr. Tom Perez. (Applause.)
MR. PEREZ: Thank you. (Applause.) Thank you very much. Thank you, Mr. President, for your confidence in me. (Speaks in Spanish.) It is a remarkably humbling and exciting phenomenon to be here today.
My parents taught my four siblings and me to work hard, to give back to our community, and to make sure that the ladder of opportunity was there for those coming after us. Over my career, I’ve learned that true progress is possible if you keep an open mind, listen to all sides, and focus on results. I look forward to taking these lessons with me, if confirmed, to my new role as Secretary of the Department of Labor.
As you well know, our nation still faces critical economic challenges, and the Department’s mission is as important as ever. I am confident that together with our partners in organized labor, the business community, grassroots communities, Republicans, Democrats, and independents alike, we can keep making progress for all working families.
In the coming weeks, as the confirmation process unfolds, I look forward to meeting with senators of both parties to discuss the Labor Department’s key role -- protecting and growing the middle class.
I’ll close again, Mr. President, by thanking you once again for this tremendous opportunity. (Speaks in Spanish.) I look forward to this opportunity to continue serving our nation.
Thank you so much. (Applause.)
END
11:55 A.M. EDT
It’s looking like President Obama is finishing up stocking his second-term Cabinet.
Assistant U.S. attorney general for civil rights Tom Perez is the expected pick to lead the Department of Labor, which leaves only four Cabinet or Cabinet-rank spots left open: Commerce Secretary, Transportation Secretary and the chiefs of the U.S. Trade Representative and the Small Business Administration.
Read full article >>
Today, the U.S. Department of Labor is celebrating its centennial anniversary. For the past 100 years, the Department of Labor has worked to promote and advance the interests of families, workers, job seekers and retirees of the United States. While protecting the dignity of American workers, the Department has ensured workers have received safety protections and fair wages for their work. The Department of Labor is proud of its many important achievements, from providing the framework for the 40-hour work week to allowing parents to take leave for family emergencies. American workers have always been the backbone of our country and as another century stretches ahead, the Department remains committed to ensuring workers have more opportunities to build a better future.
BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
A PROCLAMATION
On March 4, 1913, President William Howard Taft signed a bill establishing the United States Department of Labor -- an agency charged with promoting the welfare of American workers and ensuring their efforts are rewarded with fair wages and real protections. After decades of struggle by labor leaders and ordinary citizens, the Department took up the cause of justice in the workplace and lifted it to the highest halls of government.
Over the course of a century, the Department of Labor has fought to secure strong safeguards for workers and their families. It helped lay the cornerstones of middle class security, from the 40-hour work week and the minimum wage to family leave and pensions. As the agency once led by our Nation's first female Cabinet Secretary, the Department has broken down barriers to equal opportunity in the workplace. And for decades, it has improved worker safety and health and aggressively combated child labor at home and abroad.
Today, the Department of Labor is working to restore the basic bargain that built our country: that no matter what you look like or where you come from, if you work hard and meet your responsibilities, you can get ahead. It is forging new ladders of opportunity so a generation of workers can get the 21st century skills and training they need. And to preserve a century's progress in labor rights, the Department will continue to ensure hardworking Americans always have a voice in government and on the job.
On this centennial, we recognize the dedicated public servants at the Department of Labor who have helped move our country forward, and we reaffirm our commitment to giving America's workers the chance to build a brighter future for themselves and their families.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim March 4, 2013, as the 100th Anniversary of the United States Department of Labor. I call upon all Americans to observe this day with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities that recognize the United States Department of Labor for upholding dignity in our workplaces and our way of life. 
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this first day of March, in the year of our Lord two thousand thirteen, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-seventh.
BARACK OBAMA
The Department of Labor has suspended new enrollment into one of the nation’s largest job-training programs for low-income youths, citing cost overruns that critics have blamed on mismanagement.
The Job Corps enrollment freeze could close the door on as many as 30,000 young adults struggling in a troubled economy and could cost about 10,000 staff jobs, according to the association that represents private operators for the program.
Read full article >>
Obama’s Department of Labor released the unhappy news for Democrats: Union membership in America has fallen to the lowest level since before the New Deal laws to encourage union organization.
The Senate has confirmed the commissioner of the Montana Department of Labor and Industry to be the Department of Labor's assistant secretary overseeing the Veterans' Employment and Training Service.
The position has been vacant since Raymond M. Jefferson resigned in July 2011 after an inspector general's investigation found that he had violated federal procurement rules and ethics principles.
Today, President Barack Obama announced his intent to nominate the following individual to a key Administration post:
President Obama announced his intent to nominate the following individual to a key Administration post:
Nicholas Christopher Geale, Nominee for Member, National Mediation Board
Nicholas Christopher Geale is the Director of Oversight and Investigations on the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions for Ranking Member Michael B. Enzi, a position he has held since 2011. Mr. Geale served as Counsel to the Committee from 2009 to 2011. Previously, he worked at the Department of Labor as Counselor to the Deputy Secretary from 2007 to 2009 and as Attorney/Advisor to the Solicitor from 2006 to 2007. Mr. Geale was an Assistant General Counsel with the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority from 2004 to 2006, and an Associate at Thelen Reid & Priest LLP from 2000 to 2004. Mr. Geale received a B.A. from Claremont McKenna College and a J.D. from the Georgetown University Law Center.