 Seal of the U.S. Department of Labor | |
 Flag of the U.S. Department of Labor | |
 TheFrances Perkins Building, which serves as the headquarters of the U.S. Department of Labor | |
| Agency overview | |
|---|---|
| Formed | March 4, 1913[1] |
| Preceding agency | |
| Jurisdiction | Federal Government of the United States |
| Headquarters | Frances Perkins Building  200Constitution Avenue northwest Washington, D.C., U.S. 38°53′35″N77°00′52″W / 38.89306°N 77.01444°W /38.89306; -77.01444 |
| Employees | 16,922 (2023) |
| Annual budget | $14.6 billion (FY2023)[2] |
| Agency executives | |
| Website | dol.gov |
TheUnited States Department of Labor (DOL) is one of theexecutive departments of theU.S. federal government. It is responsible for the administration of federal laws governingoccupational safety and health, wage and hour standards,unemployment benefits, reemployment services, and occasionally, economic statistics. It is headed by thesecretary of labor, who reports directly to thepresident of the United States and is a member of the president'sCabinet.
The purpose of the Department of Labor is to foster, promote, and develop the well-being of the wage earners, job seekers, andretirees of the United States; improve working conditions; advance opportunities for profitable employment; and assure work-related benefits and rights. In carrying out this mission, the Department of Labor administers and enforces more than 180 federal laws and thousands of federal regulations. These mandates and the regulations that implement them cover many workplace activities for about 10 million employers and 125 million workers. Vince Micone is currently serving as Acting Secretary since January 20, 2025.
The department's headquarters is housed in theFrances Perkins Building, named in honor ofFrances Perkins, the Secretary of Labor from 1933 to 1945.
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In 1884, theU.S. Congress first established aBureau of Labor Statistics with the Bureau of Labor Act,[3] to collect information about labor and employment. This bureau was under theDepartment of the Interior. The Bureau started collecting economic data in 1884, and published their first report in 1886.[4] Later, in 1888, the Bureau of Labor became an independent Department of Labor, but lacked executive rank.
In February 1903, it became a bureau again when theDepartment of Commerce and Labor was established.
United States PresidentWilliam Howard Taft signed the March 4, 1913, bill (the last day of his presidency), establishing the Department of Labor as its ownCabinet-level department.William B. Wilson was appointed as the first Secretary of Labor on March 5, 1913, by President Wilson.[5] As part of this action, theUnited States Conciliation Service was created as an agency within the department; its purpose was to providemediation forlabor disputes.[6] In October 1919, Secretary Wilson chaired the first meeting of theInternational Labour Organization even though the U.S. was not yet a member.[7]
In September 1916, theFederal Employees' Compensation Act introduced benefits to workers who are injured or contract illnesses in the workplace. The act established an agency responsible for federal workers' compensation, which was transferred to the Labor Department in the 1940s and has become known as theOffice of Workers' Compensation Programs.[8]
Frances Perkins, the first female cabinet member, was appointed to be Secretary of Labor by President Roosevelt on March 4, 1933. Perkins served for 12 years, and became the longest-serving Secretary of Labor.
The passage of theTaft–Hartley Act in 1947 led to the end of the U.S. Conciliation Service, which was reconstituted outside the department as a new independent agency, theFederal Mediation and Conciliation Service.[9]
During theJohn F. Kennedy Administration, planning was undertaken to consolidate most of the department's offices, then scattered around more than 20 locations. In the mid‑1960s, construction on the "New Labor Building" began and construction was finished in 1975. In 1980, it was named in honor of Frances Perkins.
PresidentLyndon B. Johnson asked Congress to consider the idea of reuniting Commerce and Labor.[10]
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.
In the 1970s, following thecivil rights movement, the Labor Department under SecretaryGeorge P. Shultz made a concerted effort to promote racial diversity inunions.[11]
In 1978, the Department of Labor created thePhilip Arnow Award, intended to recognize outstanding career employees such as theeponymous Philip Arnow.[12] In the same year,Carin Clauss became the department's first female solicitor of the department.[13]
In 2010, a local of theAmerican Federation of Government Employees stated their unhappiness that a longstandingflextime program reduced under theGeorge W. Bush administration had not been restored under theObama administration.[14] Department officials said the program was modern and fair and that it was part of ongoing contract negotiations with the local.[14]
In August 2010, thePartnership for Public Service ranked the Department of Labor 23rd out of 31 large agencies in its annual "Best Places to Work in the Federal Government" list.[15]
In December 2010, Secretary of LaborHilda Solis was named the chair of theU.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness,[16] of which Labor has been a member since its beginnings in 1987.
In July 2011,Ray Jefferson, Assistant Secretary forVETS resigned due to his involvement in a contracting scandal.[17][18][19]
In March 2013, the department began commemorating its centennial.[20]
In July 2013,Tom Perez was confirmed as Secretary of Labor. According to remarks by Perez at his swearing-in ceremony, "Boiled down to its essence, the Department of Labor is the department of opportunity."[21]
In April 2017,Alexander Acosta was confirmed as the new Secretary of Labor. In July 2019, Acosta resigned due to a scandal involving his role in the plea deal withJeffrey Epstein.[22] He was succeeded on September 30, 2019, byEugene Scalia. Scalia served until the beginning of the Biden administration on January 20, 2021.Marty Walsh was confirmed as secretary on March 22, 2021.[23] Walsh resigned on March 11, 2023 and was succeeded by deputy secretaryJulie Su, who served in an acting position until January 20, 2025.
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