William Bauchop Wilson (April 2, 1862 – May 25, 1934) was an American labor leader and progressive politician, who immigrated as a child with his family from Lanarkshire, Scotland . After having worked as a child and adult in the coal mines of Pennsylvania, he became active as a labor organizer.
31-693: The Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) is an agency of the United States Department of Labor responsible for administering, regulating and enforcing the provisions of Title I of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA). At the time of its name change in February 2003, EBSA was known as the Pension and Welfare Benefits Administration (PWBA). Prior to January 1986, PWBA
62-693: A bureau again when the Department of Commerce and Labor was established. United States President William Howard Taft signed the March 4, 1913, bill (the last day of his presidency), establishing the Department of Labor as its own Cabinet -level department. William B. Wilson was appointed as the first Secretary of Labor on March 5, 1913, by President Wilson. As part of this action, the United States Conciliation Service
93-552: A conference on social insurance in which he discussed State developments in that field, such as the provision of mothers' pensions and workmen's compensation, and also spoke of the possibility of the United States introducing old-age pensions and universal health insurance. The Department of Labor had earlier in Wilson's term expressed favor towards an invitation to attend an International Conference on Social Insurance. Wilson
124-425: A contracting scandal. In March 2013, the department began commemorating its centennial. 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." In April 2017, Alexander Acosta was confirmed as the new Secretary of Labor. In July 2019, Acosta resigned due to
155-494: A scandal involving his role in the plea deal with Jeffrey Epstein . He was succeeded on September 30, 2019, by Eugene Scalia . Scalia served until the beginning of the Biden administration on January 20, 2021. Marty Walsh was confirmed as secretary on March 22, 2021. He resigned on March 11, 2023 and was succeeded by deputy secretary Julie Su who is currently serving in an acting position. William Bauchop Wilson Wilson
186-556: Is best remembered for his service as the first Secretary of Labor (1913–21) in the United States, serving through the years of American participation in the Great War. President Woodrow Wilson (no relation) nominated him to the office. William B. Wilson was born in Blantyre , Lanarkshire , Scotland. He was the third child of Adam Black Wilson and Helen Nelson (Bauchop) Wilson, and the first to survive early childhood. His father
217-406: Is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government . It is responsible for the administration of federal laws governing occupational safety and health , wage and hour standards, unemployment benefits , reemployment services, and occasionally, economic statistics. It is headed by the secretary of labor , who reports directly to the president of the United States and is a member of
248-456: Is organized into nine program offices: EBSA also maintains 15 regional and district field offices throughout the US to conduct investigations to detect and correct violations of Title I of ERISA and related criminal laws, and answer inquiries and complaints received by phone, mail, electronically or in person. United States Department of Labor The United States Department of Labor ( DOL )
279-643: The American Federation of Government Employees stated their unhappiness that a longstanding flextime program reduced under the George W. Bush administration had not been restored under the Obama administration . Department officials said the program was modern and fair and that it was part of ongoing contract negotiations with the local. In August 2010, the Partnership for Public Service ranked
310-559: The First World War , he was a member of the Council of National Defense . The administration was working to encourage African-American support for the war effort, both among men who served and those who were working in war industries. Among his special assistants was George Edmund Haynes , 1918 to 1921, who was the first African American to earn a doctorate from Columbia University . Haynes served as Director of Negro Economics in
341-552: The U.S. Congress first established a Bureau of Labor Statistics with the Bureau of Labor Act, to collect information about labor and employment. This bureau was under the Department of the Interior . The Bureau started collecting economic data in 1884, and published their first report in 1886. Later, in 1888, the Bureau of Labor became an independent Department of Labor, but lacked executive rank. In February 1903, it became
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#1732793870800372-652: The bituminous coal region of Pennsylvania , settling in the little town of Arnot , located in Tioga County . After finding a job, he sent for his wife and family. Together with his father-in-law, they departed Glasgow for the United States in August 1870. Immediately after arriving in the United States, the boy William Wilson was enrolled in public school in Arnot. This interval proved to be short-lived, however, as his father began to suffer serious back problems and
403-478: The Department of Labor 23rd out of 31 large agencies in its annual "Best Places to Work in the Federal Government" list. In December 2010, Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis was named the chair of the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness , of which Labor has been a member since its beginnings in 1987. In July 2011, Ray Jefferson , Assistant Secretary for VETS resigned due to his involvement in
434-590: The Labor Department under Secretary George P. Shultz made a concerted effort to promote racial diversity in unions . In 1978, the Department of Labor created the Philip Arnow Award , intended to recognize outstanding career employees such as the eponymous Philip Arnow. In the same year, Carin Clauss became the department's first female solicitor of the department. In 2010, a local of
465-574: The Sixty-second Congress. Wilson was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1912 and for election in 1914. He was appointed United States Secretary of Labor in the Cabinet of President Woodrow Wilson and served from March 5, 1913, to March 5, 1921. One of the first efforts he focused on was getting underway the newly created United States Conciliation Service , whose purpose was to provide mediation for labor disputes . During
496-522: The U.S. Conciliation Service, which was reconstituted outside the department as a new independent agency, the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service . During the John 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
527-617: The United States and confirmation by the United States Senate . The office is currently held by Lisa Gomez, who was sworn in as Assistant Secretary on October 11, 2022. The previous Assistant Secretary of Labor for Employee Benefits Security and head of the Employee Benefits Security Administration was Preston Rutledge. Past Assistant Secretaries include Phyllis Borzi , Bradford P. Campbell , Ann L. Combs, and Olena Berg-Lacy. EBSA
558-526: The United States Department of Labor. Competition was fierce for the higher-paying jobs in the defense industries, and during Red Summer of 1919 , whites attacked blacks in numerous cities. Haynes tried to mitigate racial conflict in employment, housing, and recreation. He also continued his earlier work in studying how blacks were excluded from certain trade unions, interracial conditions in the workplace, and issues in child labor. Wilson
589-629: The country, laying the groundwork for his career as a trade union organizer and leader. He served as international secretary-treasurer of the United Mine Workers of America from 1900 to 1908. He was elected as a Democrat from Pennsylvania's 15th congressional district to the Sixtieth , Sixty-first , and Sixty-second Congresses. He served as chairman of the United States House Committee on Labor during
620-432: The fact that until working men were as strong, collectively, as their employers, they would be forced...to accept whatever conditions were imposed upon them. In 1876, when Wilson was just 14 years old, there was declining membership in the local Miners' and Laborers' Benevolent Association. They selected Wilson, the energetic youngster, as the organization's Secretary. He began to correspond with other labor activists around
651-477: The fledgling union threatened a strike over a wage reduction, union representative Wilson discovered the limits of union solidarity. He was paddled by a foreman and the incipient strike was broken. The event proved to be a valuable learning experience for Wilson, who later recalled in his unpublished memoirs: His argument had been forceful and effective, but it was applied to the wrong part of my anatomy to be permanently convincing.... It helped impress upon my mind
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#1732793870800682-473: The president's Cabinet . The purpose of the Department of Labor is to foster, promote, and develop the well-being of the wage earners, job seekers, and retirees 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
713-551: The regulations that implement them cover many workplace activities for about 10 million employers and 125 million workers. Julie Su is currently serving as acting secretary since March 11, 2023, following the resignation of Marty Walsh . The department's headquarters is housed in the Frances Perkins Building , named in honor of Frances Perkins , the Secretary of Labor from 1933 to 1945. In 1884,
744-558: Was a coal miner . During a mining strike in February 1868, the family was evicted from their company-owned home as the company tried to suppress the strike. His father Adam Wilson traveled around Scotland unsuccessfully trying to find other work. He ultimately decided to emigrate to the United States to find employment there, and left his wife and three children, sailing by ship across the Atlantic in April 1870. Adam Wilson found work in
775-560: Was a member of the Federal Board for Vocational Education from 1914 to 1921 and served as chairman of the board in 1920 and 1921. He was appointed on March 4, 1921, a member of the International Joint Commission , created to prevent disputes regarding the use of the boundary waters between the United States and Canada , and served until March 21, 1921, when he resigned. In December 1916, Wilson addressed
806-559: Was an unsuccessful candidate for election to the United States Senate in 1926 against Republican William Scott Vare . After his public service he was engaged in mining and agricultural pursuits near Blossburg, Pennsylvania . He died on board a train near Savannah, Georgia on May 25, 1934. He was buried in Arbon Cemetery in Blossburg. In 2007, Wilson was named to the U.S. Department of Labor's Labor Hall of Fame . It
837-644: Was created as an agency within the department; its purpose was to provide mediation for labor disputes . In October 1919, Secretary Wilson chaired the first meeting of the International Labour Organization even though the U.S. was not yet a member. In September 1916, the Federal 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
868-413: Was finished in 1975. In 1980, it was named in honor of Frances Perkins. President Lyndon B. Johnson asked Congress to consider the idea of reuniting Commerce and Labor. 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 the civil rights movement ,
899-690: Was known as the Pension and Welfare Benefits Program . Originally the Program was established as an Office within the Labor Management Services Administration reporting the then Assistant Secretary Paul Fasser and his successors from 1974 through 1986. EBSA is led by the Assistant Secretary of Labor for Employee Benefits Security, a Sub-Cabinet-level position requiring nomination by the President of
930-515: Was transferred to the Labor Department in the 1940s and has become known as the Office of Workers' Compensation Programs . 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 the Taft–Hartley Act in 1947 led to the end of
961-401: Was unable to complete his work without assistance. At the age of 9, William was removed from school and sent to help his father in the mines. He continued to work as a miner for nearly two decades. In 1874, young William engaged in labor organizing for the first time when he attempted to launch a union for the boys who worked as trappers , manually operating the ventilation of the mines. When