Question
Looking at Exhibit 1-12, starting on page 28 of your text, select and research a department. Give a summary, in your own words, of the departments’ mission, a regulation they passed, and how this department and its subcabinet agencies interact with your daily life. Please limit 2 students per department, first come first serve. Write the name of the department you selected in the “Subject” field so it is clear to all which departments are taken
Answer
Admin Law
Department of Labor
The United States Department of Labor (DOL) was created in 1884 as Bureau of Labor Statistics before it transformed into a department in 1913. It is a cabinet-level department that is charged with regulating and passing policies in the labor domains that include occupational safety, unemployment insurance benefits, wage and hour standard, reemployment services, as well as some economic statistics. The department is headed by the United States Secretary of Labor. The department and its agencies have been replicated at state level. The main objective of the department is to progressively improve the standards of labor so as to improve the well-being of the workforce as well as the safety and health of the workers. The department is also involved in improving and safeguarding the rights and benefits of the employees. The department has thus significantly contributed to the improvement of working conditions; has protected the welfare of the retirees; helped in advancing the opportunities for gainful employment; and also assists workers to find employers among other functions.
The DOL of labor passed the whistleblower protection laws and regulation that protect the employees from victimized by their employer for complaining about violation of laws when they have certain evidences. It guarantees the workers and contractors the freedom of speech in certain situations that include gross waste of funds, abuse of authority, gross mismanagement, or exposure of employees or the public to health hazards. Such laws have helped to improve the labor environment.
The Department of Labor and its sub-agencies interact with my daily life in a number of ways. As a worker, the laws and regulations that are enforced by the sub-agencies of the DOL help in improving my working conditions. For instance, the laws on wages and hours provide regulations on minimum wage that can be paid to the employees. It also provides regulations that guide overtime work and pay. The laws protect me from being exploited by the employer.