To date, President Obama has announced nominees for eight of the eighteen Department of Labor positions that he will fill.  Congress has confirmed one of the six individuals whom he has officially nominated to date: Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis.  The background and experience of Secretary Solis and named nominees are telling with regards to the DOL’s likely focus under the Obama Administration and suggest that organized labor and wage/hour issues will be at the forefront of the employment/labor field for the next four years.

Labor Secretary Solis, a staunch supporter of the Employee Free Choice Act, made it clear during the opening remarks at her confirmation hearing that her vision for the DOL is “rooted” in who she is—the daughter of a Teamsters Union shop steward.  Secretary Solis has announced that one of the DOL’s main priorities, under her guidance, will be to “ensure that American Workers are paid what they deserve.”  At her swearing-in ceremony, Secretary Solis told the union leaders in attendance, “Let me say publicly and personally, and without reservation: You are a very, very important part of what I will be doing in the next few years.”  And a month after her confirmation, Secretary Solis reiterated that she is going to focus on the DOL’s enforcement responsibilities to ensure that “that every worker is paid at least the minimum wage, that those who work overtime are properly compensated, that child labor laws are strictly enforced and that every worker is provided a safe and healthful environment.”

At least two other nominees have strong connections to organized labor.  Michael Kerr, who has been nominated for the position of Assistant Secretary for Administration and Management, is currently the Assistant to the Secretary-Treasurer for the Service Employees International Union.  Ms. M. Patricia Smith, announced by President Obama as his desired appointee for Solicitor of Labor, has been praised in the past for her work by public-employee unions.

The anticipated Deputy Secretary of Labor, Seth Harris, who is awaiting confirmation, appears to share Secretary Solis’s focus on wage/hour issues.  Mr. Harris, a professor and director of the Labor and Employment Law Program at New York Law School, has written articles critical of the Bush Administration’s Department of Labor.  Specifically, Mr. Harris has been critical of the perceived expansion of white-collar exemptions to the Fair Labor Standards Act.

Other Obama nominees include Brian Kennedy for Assistant Secretary for Congressional and Intergovernmental Affairs, Phyllis C. Borzi for Assistant Secretary for Employee Benefits Security, Kathy Martinez for Assistant Secretary for Disability Employment Policy, and Jane Oates for Assistant Secretary for Employment and Training.