US Labor Department launches website for public feedback on regulations

U.S. Department of Labor
Office of the Assistant Secretary for Policy

OASP News Release: [03/16/2011]
Contact Name: David Roberts
Phone Number: (202) 693-5945
Release Number: 11-0386-NAT

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor today announced the availability of a new online tool to collect public feedback on ways to improve regulations and the department's regulatory review process.
The online tool is part of the department's compliance with Executive Order 13563, which calls for federal agencies to detail how they will review existing significant regulations to identify whether regulations may be made more effective or less burdensome.
Members of the public who wish to provide comments or suggestions to improve Department of Labor regulations by modifying, streamlining, expanding or repealing them are encouraged to visit http://www.dol.gov/regulations/regreview.htm.
Comments must be received no later than March 31.

http://www.dol.gov/opa/media/press/asp/oasp20110386.htm

OSHA declares texting while driving a workplace hazard

Lexology.com
Hunton & Williams LLP
USA
December 17 2010

Recently, there has been a large amount of public commentary regarding the dangers of distracted driving, including texting while driving. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), which regulates workplace safety, has now officially declared texting while driving to be a workplace hazard and an OSHA violation. In its recent open letter to employers, OSHA explained that:
It is [the employer’s] responsibility and legal obligation to create and maintain a safe and healthful workplace, and that would include having a clear, unequivocal and enforced policy against the hazard of texting while driving. Companies are in violation of [OSHA] if, by policy or practice, they require texting while driving, or create incentives that encourage or condone it, or they structure work so that texting is a practical necessity for workers to carry out their job.
The Department of Labor and the Department of Transportation are partnering with OSHA in its distracted driving initiative. These government agencies are initiating public awareness campaigns on the issue of distracted driving.

Full Story: http://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=4442fc7e-c37f-4867-b3be-2b962c1d9cb6&utm_source=Lexology+Daily+Newsfeed&utm_medium=HTML+email+-+Body+-+Federal+section&utm_campaign=Lexology+subscriber+daily+feed&utm_content=Lexology+Daily+Newsfeed+2011-01-13&utm_term=

Obama Labor Dept. Stresses Law Enforcement—Big Change from Bush Era

AFL-CIO NOW BLOG
by James Parks, Oct 25, 2010

The U.S. Labor Department is committed to stronger enforcement of labor laws and is determined to reverse a “culture of noncompliance’’ that developed during the anti-worker years of the Bush administration, Labor Solicitor Patricia Smith said.
Smith told a labor law conference at Suffolk University Law School last week that the Bush administration emphasized voluntary compliance by employers while investigations and enforcement of labor laws declined, according to the Daily Labor Report (subscription required).
They relied on trickle-down enforcement; it doesn’t work any better than trickle-down economics. [As a result of reduced enforcement] many employers developed a “catch-me-if-you-can” attitude. Our challenge is to change that attitude.

Full Story:http://blog.aflcio.org/2010/10/25/obama-labor-dept-stresses-law-enforcement-big-change-from-bush-era/

100 Days to the ADA

The Department of Labor's Office of Disability Employment Policy has launched "100 Days to the ADA" to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act:

100 Days to the ADA
On April 17, 2010, Disability.gov launched 100 Days to the ADA, a countdown to the 20th Anniversary of the signing of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. During this period, Disability.gov will explore one of our nation’s most important civil rights achievements, including ramifications of the ADA, historical points leading up to its creation and how supporting individuals with disabilities supports ALL Americans.
The countdown will be available on Disability.gov's Blog, an award-winning federal government Web site that provides comprehensive information about disability-related programs, services, laws and benefits. The site is managed by ODEP, in partnership with 21 other federal agencies.
Join the Countdown

http://www.dol.gov/odep/

March 2010 Disability Employment Statistics Released

The Department of Labor's Office of Disability Employment Policy released statistics on March unemployment for individuals with disabilities:

March 2010 Disability Employment Statistics Released
In March 2010, the percentage of people with disabilities in the labor force was 22.5. This translates into a total of 20,891,000 who are included in the civilian noninstitutional population (16 years and older) but not in the labor force. By comparison, the percentage of persons with no disability in the labor force is 70.2.
The unemployment rate for those with disabilities was 13.9 percent, compared with 10.1 percent for persons with no disability, not seasonally adjusted.
Read about the March Disability Employment Statistics
Read Commonly Used Terms in BLS Employment Statistics

For more information, go to: http://www.dol.gov/odep/

Five Silicon Valley companies fought release of employment data, and won

mercurynews.com
By Mike Swift
mswift@mercurynews.com
Posted: 02/14/2010 04:00:00 PM PST
Updated: 02/14/2010 08:47:17 PM PST

Google, the company that wants to make the world's information accessible, says the race and gender of its work force is a trade secret that cannot be released.
So do Apple, Yahoo, Oracle and Applied Materials. These five companies waged an 18-month Freedom of Information battle with the Mercury News, convincing federal regulators who collect the data that its release would cause "commercial harm" by potentially revealing the companies' business strategy to competitors. A sixth company, Hewlett-Packard, fought the release and lost.
But many of their industry peers see the issue differently. The Mercury News initially set out to obtain race and gender data on the valley's 15 largest companies, and nine — including Intel, Cisco Systems, eBay, AMD, Sanmina and Sun Microsystems — agreed to allow the U.S. Department of Labor to provide it....

The Labor Department data ultimately obtained by the Mercury News shows that while the collective work force of 10 of the valley's largest companies grew by 16 percent from 1999 to 2005, an already small population of black workers dropped by 16 percent, while the number of Hispanic workers declined by 11 percent. By 2005, only about 2,200 of the 30,000 Silicon Valley-based workers at those 10 companies were black or Hispanic.


Full Story: http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_14382477?source=most_emailed

DOL Women's Bureau and Solicitor Nominees Confirmed by Senate

On February 4 and 11, 2010, two administration nominees to Department of Labor posts were confirmed by the Senate: M. Patricia Smith, of New York, to be Solicitor for the Department of Labor and Sara Manzano-Diaz, of Pennsylvania, to be Director of the Women's Bureau, Department of Labor.

The following is information released by the White House about these two appointees:

Sara Manzano-Diaz was nominated to lead the Women's Bureau at the Department of Labor. For almost 90 years, the Department of Labor's Women's Bureau has worked to improve the status of wage-earning women, improve their working conditions, and advance their opportunities for profitable employment. The Bureau is the only federal agency mandated to represent the needs of wage-earning women. In 1922, it launched a major investigation on the conditions facing African-American women in industry. In the 1950's, it examined the dynamic situation of older women as office workers. In the 1980's, it broke new ground on the plight of contingent workers, and in the 1990's it researched and reported on domestic violence, long before experts considered the topic relevant to the workplace.
Sara is uniquely qualified to lead the Women's Bureau. She has spent her career in public service advocating on behalf of working class families, women, and girls. She has more than 25 years of federal, state, and judicial experience including 16 years in senior management. Most recently, she was appointed by Governor Edward G. Rendell as Deputy Secretary for Regulatory Programs at the Pennsylvania Department of State. As Deputy Secretary, and the highest-ranking Latina in Pennsylvania state government, Ms. Manzano-Diaz is responsible for protecting the health, safety, and welfare of the public by overseeing the licensure of approximately 1 million professionals. Previously, she served as Deputy General Counsel for Civil Rights and Litigation at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, where she enforced fair housing, civil rights, and anti-discrimination laws. She has served as Co-Chair of The Forum of Executive Women's Mentoring Committee, which mentors young professional women as they begin their careers, and also participated in Madrinas, a program that provides mentors for at-risk Latina girls to encourage them to finish high school and attend college. http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/Two-Nominations-for-the-Health-Safety-and-Lives-of-Women-and-Girls

M. Patricia Smith, Nominee for Solicitor, Department of LaborM. Patricia Smith is currently the Commissioner of the New York State Department of Labor and co-chair of New York State’s Economic Security sub-cabinet. She oversees the New York State Department of Labor with an annual budget of $4 billion, with 3,700 employees in 80 offices throughout the state and serves as advisor to Governor David Paterson on workforce and labor policy. Previously, she served for 20 years in the Labor Bureau of the New York State Attorney General’s Office, the last 8 as Bureau Chief. Her responsibilities included representing the New York State Department of Labor and the New York State Workers’ Compensation Board in all State and Federal litigation and advancing an affirmative docket enforcing New York’s Labor Laws. In 1996 and 1997, she argued and won two Employment Retirement Income Security Act cases before the United States Supreme Court. Before joining the Office of the Attorney General, she worked for a variety of Legal Services Organizations representing unemployment claimants, minimum wage workers, workers in federal job training programs and job seekers. She is an honors graduate of Trinity College in Washington, D.C. and received her law degree, cum laude, from the New York University School of Law. http://www.whitehouse.gov/the_press_office/President-Obama-Announces-More-Key-Administration-Posts-3/19/09

U.S. Department of Labor’s proposed 2011 budgets reflects an increased emphasis on enforcement

Lexology
USA February 9 2010
Morgan Lewis & Bokius LLP

On February 1, Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis released the Obama administration’s proposed fiscal year 2011 budget for the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL or the Department). Adopting a theme of “good jobs for everyone,” the DOL’s FY2011 budget reshuffles the Department’s discretionary funds to support new policy, program, and enforcement priorities for the DOL.
Employers should be mindful of the programmatic and policy themes underlying the more technical “dollars and cents” of the budget process. These themes give invaluable insights into the direction the Department intends to move labor and employment law in the coming months.
Summary of Budget Proposal
The DOL’s budget proposal is only one step in a longer funding process that will carry through over the next few years. With that said, however, employers can expect the policies and priorities identified in the Department’s budget to move forward—whether Congress approves the funding or not.
A number of themes emerge that should assist employers in this new regulatory environment:
The DOL prefers corporatewide solutions, not site-specific fixes to a problem, be it an Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) violation or an Office of Federal Contracts Compliance Programs (OFCCP) audit. Employers should think broadly when problems emerge, and question whether the “band-aid” approach is always appropriate for any given situation.
The DOL will continue to target repeat offenders, and will up the ante significantly when an employer is labeled as a “persistent” problem. Employers need to ensure that any “fixes” made in response to DOL complaints or audits completely fix the problem, and do so in a timely manner— companywide.
The DOL (and the administration as a whole) values open access, making investigations less than confidential, and making press releases the norm of doing business. Employers need to be prepared for external pressure—from the press, from the community, and from the Department—to move in the directions the DOL has identified.
The DOL’s expanded enforcement will be accompanied by a substantial increase in regulatory activity, creating new obligations for employers.
...

Office of Federal Contractor Compliance Programs Budget
In his State of the Union address last month, President Obama announced, “We are going to crack down on violations of equal pay laws—so that women get equal pay for an equal day’s work.” The FY2011 budget proposal for the Department of Labor implements this part of the president’s agenda. Secretary Solis described this initiative in her budget presentation as “narrow[ing] the wage gap” and requiring employers to “offer fair compensation.”
The OFCCP currently investigates whether federal contractors’ pay and employment practices are discriminatory, and it will play a key role in the Administration’s expanded enforcement agenda. The OFCCP received a 33% budget increase in FY2010 to $105 million, and “has embarked on an unprecedented initiative” to hire 213 new compliance officers. The FY2011 budget proposal maintains these high funding levels: the OFCCP would therefore receive an increase to $113 million (788 full-time equivalents) for FY2011.

Full Story: http://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=01a500b0-4f96-411a-975b-cc1a42cab5da

DOL Issues an Employment Law Guide

News Release
OASP News Release: [11/30/2009]
Contact Name: Lina Garcia
Phone Number: (202) 693-4661
Release Number: 09-1467-NAT
US Labor Department releases updated Employment Law Guide
New version incorporates recent changes to federal employment laws

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor today announced the availability of an updated version of its popular Employment Law Guide, an online publication that describes the major employment laws administered by the department. The Guide helps the public — workers and employers — understand many of the laws affecting the workplace. For instance, it helps small businesses develop wage, benefit, safety and health, and nondiscrimination policies. It also benefits employees and employee representatives who need information about worker rights and responsibilities under federal employment laws.
"Fair and safe practices in the workplace are a top priority for the Department of Labor, and we want to make it simple for both employers and workers to understand the federal policies that protect them," said Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis. "Our new Employment Law Guide provides updated and user-friendly information and guidance. We encourage everyone to use it."
Following a topical format and written in plain language, the Employment Law Guide is especially helpful for employers without a dedicated legal or human resources staff. The updated version addresses recent and important changes in employment laws, including the increase in the federal minimum wage and an expansion of the Family and Medical Leave Act that grants qualified relatives of veterans leave to care for ill or injured uniformed service members or to fulfill obligations that arise when a relative is called to active duty in the military. The Guide also now includes a chapter on child labor regulations in the agriculture industry and one on the Defense Base Act, which provides workers' compensation benefits to civilian employees working outside the United States on U.S. military bases or under certain contracts with the U.S.
The Employment Law Guide is a companion to the department's FirstStep overview advisor, an online system that allows employers to quickly and easily determine which federal employment laws apply to them by answering a few simple questions about relevant variables. Each chapter in the Employment Law Guide corresponds to the laws addressed in the FirstStep advisor, outlining coverage under the law; its basic requirements; employee rights; recordkeeping, reporting, notice and poster requirements; penalties and sanctions for non-compliance; relation to state, local and other federal laws; and contact information for further assistance.
Together, the updated Employment Law Guide and FirstStep overview advisor offer employers the information they need to ensure safe and fair workplace policies and practices. Both are available at http://www.dol.gov/elaws/ or http://www.dol.gov/compliance/.
# # #

Three Issue Briefs from the DOL Office of Disability Employment Policy

Three Issue Briefs from the ODEP-funded National Technical Assistance and Research (NTAR) Leadership Center are now available.
Issue Brief No. 1: Entrepreneurship for Veterans with Disabilities: Lessons Learned from the Field examines entrepreneurship as a viable option for veterans with disabilities, particularly those returning from the present-day Middle East conflicts. This brief examines the Entrepreneurship Bootcamp (EBV) introduced at Syracuse University's Walt Whitman School of Management.
Issue Brief No. 2: Leveraging State Economic Development Resources to Create Job Opportunities for People with Disabilities highlights existing state regional, and local economic development resource tools and discusses ways in which states and localities can leverage traditional loan and financing programs that enhance job creation, provide access to local employment opportunities, or help support employment for residents, with and without disabilities.
Issue Brief No. 3: Collaborating and Coordinating with Employers examines the evolving relationship between disability employment initiatives and employers, and uses case illustrations of selected collaborations to demonstrate these characteristics, including implications for effectively formulating broad-scale promotion of disability workforce investment initiatives.
The NTAR Leadership Center is a collaboration of partners with expertise in workforce development, disability employment, economic development, financial education, benefits planning, and leadership development. Established in September 2007 through a grant from ODEP, the Center is housed at the John J. Heldrich Center for Workforce Development at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey.
http://www.dol.gov/odep/

Controversial Obama Labor Nominee Withdrawn

[From the "Right Side"....]

The American Spectator
By Philip Klein on 10.14.09 @ 2:20PM

Lorelei Boylan, Presidential Obama's controversial nominee to serve as the administrator of the Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division, has been withdrawn, according to the White House website.
During her time in the New York Labor Department, Boylan ran an initiative, devised by Patricia Smith -- another Obama appointee -- which tasked union members with policing the behavior of businesses. As Americans for Limited Government wrote in a report earlier this year (pdf):
The enforcement initiative essentially deputizes private entities, such as ACORN, to do enforcement work through "formal partnerships" with the state. Groups participating in this initiative are given a specific geographic zone to patrol, are provided with training and literature, and are assigned a designated contact person to which they provide "referrals" when they find what they decide are violations of wage and hour laws....

The nomination of Boylan's partner in the New York scheme, Patricia Smith, still remains intact. Smith was nominated to be Solicitor of Labor, the third highest official in the department, and the one who is in charge of offering legal advice. Sen. Mike Enzi has put a hold on the nomination, meaning 60 votes will be required to block a filibuster and get her confirmed.

Full Story: http://spectator.org/blog/2009/10/14/controversial-obama-labor-nomi

VETS 100 Deadline Extended to October 31, 2009

From the U.S. Department of Labor's Veterans Employment and Training Service website:

VETS-100 SPECIAL NOTICE FOR FEDERAL CONTRACTORS:Due to the high volume of calls, the VETS-100 helpdesk’s telephone lines and email box are overloaded. Federal contractors who can’t reach the helpdesk for assistance have until October 31, 2009 to file their VETS-100 or VETS-100A Report(s). We encourage every contractor not to wait until the 31st to file. If a company cannot file the report(s) by October, 31, 2009, it can request additional time to submit its report(s) to rkaiser@vets100.com. This email address will respond to only requests for extensions beyond October 31, 2009, and will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

Go to: http://www.dol.gov/vets/ for more information.

Solis Beefs Up Worker Protection Enforcement Staffs

Workforce Management
September 3, 2009

Labor Secretary Hilda Solis reiterated that keeping workers safe on the job and ensuring that they receive all the pay that’s due to them are priorities, as she approaches her first Labor Day as head of the agency.
In a brief conference call with reporters Thursday, September 3, Solis said that by 2010, the department will have 1,275 new inspectors at the Occupational Safety and Health Administration and 980 investigators in the Wage and Hour Division. That's an increase of more than 400 enforcement staff.
The enforcement emphasis is designed to give the department a new orientation after what the Obama administration portrays as eight years of lax oversight during President George W. Bush’s tenure.
The Obama budget request to Congress asks for $1.7 billion for worker protection programs, a 10 percent increase over the previous fiscal year. In the first six months of the year, the department has recovered more than $82 million in back wages for 107,000 minimum-wage workers.
Earlier in the week, Deputy Labor Secretary Seth Harris summed up the agency’s mission for a Washington audience.
“The department of good jobs for everyone,” he said.

Full Story: http://www.workforce.com/section/00/article/26/65/30.php?src=wfw090908a

DOL Releases Information on ARRA Contractors

The US Department of Labor has released additional information regarding the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) funding and contractors who have received such funds. The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs will have responsibility ensuring compliance with Executive Order 11246 and other affirmative action/EEO laws. To see the spreadsheet of entities receiving ARRA contracts and other information, go to: http://www.dol.gov/recovery/.

The OFCCP National ARRA Forum, "Good Jobs for Everyone," will be held on Wednesday, September 9, 2009, at the Holiday Inn Hotel and Suites, Old Town Alexandria, VA
625 First Street, Alexandria, VA 22314
(703) 548-6300
http://www.hioldtownalexandriahotel.com/

For more information, including the Agenda, go to: http://www.dol.gov/esa/ofccp/arra_data/forum_agenda.htm

Department of Labor Eliminates Employment Standards Administration

In a memorandum to Employment Standards Administration (ESA) employees dated July 8, 2009, Acting Assistant Secretary Shelby Hallmark advised that the Department of Labor will abolish ESA effective November 8, 2009. The component parts of the ESA, the Office of Labor Management Standards, the office of Workers' Compensation Programs, the Wage and Hour Administration and the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) will be stand-alone programs reporting directly to the Office of the Secretary of Labor. The memorandum suggests that the reorganization will enhance efficiency and cost savings and improve policy decision making.

Reporting directly to the Secretary of Labor's office, the agencies will immediately enjoy increased visibility and will gain the Secretary's enhanced attention -- and control. It may also suggest that the worker protection agencies, including OFCCP, are a higher priority for this Administration. Whether the reorganization will enhance efficiency and cost savings remains to be seen. It is also unclear if the heads of the agencies will attain Assistant Secretary status or will, like the Women's Bureau, be given the title "Director". During the Clinton Administration, the OFCCP head's title was changed from Director to "Deputy Assistant Secretary."

DOL Secretary Solis Issues Statement on 19th Anniversary of the ADA

ODEP News Release: [07/24/2009]
Contact Name: Bennett Gamble or Jennifer Kaplan
Phone Number: (202) 693-4667 or x5052
Release Number: 09-0865-NAT

Statement by U.S. Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis on 19th anniversary of Americans with Disabilities Act

WASHINGTON — Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis today issued the following statement regarding the 19th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA):
"July 26 marks the 19th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act, landmark legislation designed to prevent discrimination and enable individuals with disabilities to fully participate in all aspects of society.
"The ADA's provisions include the right to seek, obtain, pursue and maintain employment without being hampered by physical or attitudinal barriers. I believe that having a job is a civil right. Those who are qualified for and want to work should not be denied that right because of an inaccessible building or an outdated set of assumptions about what they can or cannot do.
"In nearly two decades, our nation has come a long way in recognizing the talents and contributions of more than 50 million Americans with disabilities. Unfortunately, the employment rate for people with disabilities in this country is still unacceptably low. Only 22.6 percent of individuals with disabilities are participating in the labor force, compared to 71.9 percent of people with no disability. And although the federal government strives to be a model employer, in actuality the number of people with disabilities in the federal workforce has decreased over the past decade. This trend must be reversed, and the Department of Labor will be a leader in the effort.
"I am pleased to welcome the Honorable Kathy Martinez as the Labor Department's new assistant secretary for the Office of Disability Employment Policy. Kathy's years of leadership as an internationally recognized advocate for people with disabilities, as well as her expertise in diversity and gender issues, make her a perfect fit. Her extensive background includes serving as executive director for the World Institute on Disability and as a board member of the U.S. Institute of Peace.
"The Department of Labor's Office of Disability Employment Policy has an abundance of resources to assist employers, workers and others. Information is available on the department's Web site at http://www.dol.gov/odep/."

Obama Labor Appointee Vows to Bolster Unions, Enforcement, Training

Workforce Management
December 19, 2008

President-elect Barack Obama’s nominee for secretary of labor promised to bolster unions, workforce training and the agency’s enforcement of pay rules when she was introduced at a Chicago press conference on Friday, December 19.
Obama has tapped Rep. Hilda Solis, D-California, to helm the Department of Labor, one of four appointments he made Friday. He also announced his choices for secretary of transportation, U.S. trade representative and head of the Small Business Administration.
In her fourth term representing parts of Los Angeles and outlying areas of the city, Solis is the third Hispanic that Obama has chosen for a Cabinet position. He said that she “has been a champion of our middle class” and “an advocate for everyday people.”
Obama asserted that Solis would turn around what he called a wayward agency.
“For the past eight years, the Department of Labor has not lived up to its role either as an advocate for hardworking families or as an arbitrator of fairness in relations between labor and management,” Obama said. “That will change when Hilda Solis is secretary of labor. Under her leadership, I am confident that the Department of Labor will once again stand up for working families.”

Full Story: http://www.workforce.com/section/00/article/26/05/02.php

In Transition Labor Secretary

The Washington Post
Monday, December 1, 2008; A02
Jennifer M. Granholm
Current job: Governor of Michigan.

Credentials: Granholm, 49, a Canadian-born graduate of Harvard Law School, has been a popular governor in a state hit hard by economic woes. As governor, she has championed infrastructure projects to put people to work and pushed new job-training initiatives to help workers in shrinking industries transition to new work. Before taking office in 2003, Granholm served as Michigan's attorney general. Before that, she was Wayne County corporate counsel and a federal prosecutor.
What she offers: Granholm has grappled with many of the problems now confronting the nation's workforce: a contraction of jobs and the need to retrain workers for a shifting economy. She also is one of the economic advisers for President-elect Barack Obama's transition team.

Antonio R. Villaraigosa
Current job: Mayor of Los Angeles.
Credentials: Villaraigosa, 55, became the first Hispanic mayor of Los Angeles in modern times when he defeated incumbent James Hahn in a 2005 runoff election. Before that, Villaraigosa was a member of the California Assembly, where he ascended to be speaker of the House. He also has served as a Los Angeles City Council member.
What he offers: After being engulfed in personal controversy surrounding his collapsing marriage and an affair with a television reporter, he has built a strong record as mayor of Los Angeles. He also serves on Obama's transition team as one of the president-elect's coterie of economic advisers.

David E. Bonior
Current job: Chairman of American Rights at Work and professor of labor studies at Wayne State University.
Credentials: Bonior, 63, was a member of the Michigan House before serving for 26 years in the U.S. House. He rose to Democratic whip, the body's No. 2 post. He also was campaign manager for the 2008 presidential bid of former senator John Edwards (D-N.C.).
What he offers: Bonior is an outspoken advocate of worker rights and critic of many free-trade agreements who enjoys strong support from unions. Bonior would bring an unequivocal labor voice to Obama's economic team, which some union officials have quietly criticized for being heavily stacked with Wall Street-oriented centrists. He also serves on an economic advisory group that Obama convened after his election. Bonior endorsed Obama after Edwards dropped out of the Democratic primary race.

Full Story: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/11/30/AR2008113002039_pf.html

VETS-100 FORM DUE SEPTEMBER 30TH FOR SOME FEDERAL CONTRACTORS

The Federal Contractor Program requires that any contractor receiving a contract before December 1, 2003 from the federal government in the amount of $25,000 or more, or any subcontractor receiving a contract in the amount of $25,000 or more from such a covered contractor must file a VETS-100 Report on an annual basis. In addition, any federal contractor or subcontractor is also required to take affirmative action to hire and promote qualified special disabled veterans, veterans of the Vietnam-era and any veterans who served on active duty during a war or in a campaign or expedition for which a campaign badge has been authorized. The filing deadline is September 30, 2008. Employers can file reports at the DOL’s Web site or submit a diskette in the data format specified by the DOL.

To see the Frequently Asked Questions for the VETS 100 form, including sanctions for failure to file, go to: http://www.dol.gov/vets/contractor/main.htm

To contact VETS about the form, please contact the VETS-100 office by e-mail at helpdesk@vets100.com or by phone at (301) 306-6752 for further assistance.

America's Heroes at Work

The U.S. Department of Labor has launched a new website, "America's Heroes at Work," to support the Employment Success of Returning Service Members with Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Designed for employers and the workforce development system, this Web site is a link to information and tools to help returning service members affected by TBI and/or PTSD succeed in the workplace - particularly service members returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.

America's Heroes at Work is managed jointly by DOL's Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) and Veterans' Employment and Training Service (VETS) in collaboration with other federal agencies engaged in TBI and PTSD programs, including the Departments of Defense, Veterans Affairs, Health and Human Services and Education, the Small Business Administration, the Social Security Administration and others.

Visit the website at: http://www.americasheroesatwork.gov/.