29 U.S.C. Chapter 12 — DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Contents

Chapter 12 · Department of labor

551Establishment of Department; Secretary; seal#

There shall be an executive department in the Government to be called the Department of Labor, with a Secretary of Labor, who shall be the head thereof, to be appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, and whose tenure of office shall be like that of the heads of the other executive departments. The provisions of title 4 of the Revised Statutes, including all amendments thereto, shall be applicable to said department. The purpose of the Department of Labor shall be to foster, promote, and develop the welfare of the wage earners of the United States, to improve their working conditions, and to advance their opportunities for profitable employment. The said Secretary shall cause a seal of office to be made for the said department of such device as the President shall approve and judicial notice shall be taken of the said seal.

552Deputy Secretary; appointment; duties#

There is established in the Department of Labor the office of Deputy Secretary of Labor, which shall be filled by appointment by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. The Deputy Secretary shall perform such duties as may be prescribed by the Secretary of Labor or required by law. The Deputy Secretary shall (1) in case of the death, resignation, or removal from office of the Secretary, perform the duties of the Secretary until a successor is appointed, and (2) in case of the absence or sickness of the Secretary, perform the duties of the Secretary until such absence or sickness shall terminate.

553Assistant Secretaries; appointment; duties#

There are established in the Department of Labor nine offices of Assistant Secretary of Labor, which shall be filled by appointment by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. Each of the Assistant Secretaries of Labor shall perform such duties as may be prescribed by the Secretary of Labor or required by law. One of such Assistant Secretaries shall be an Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health.

554Assistants to Secretary#

There shall be in the Department of Labor not more than two assistants to the Secretary, who shall be appointed by the President and shall perform such duties as may be prescribed by the Secretary of Labor or required by law.

555Solicitor#

There shall be a solicitor for the Department of Labor.

556Chief clerk; other employees#

There shall be in said department a chief clerk and such other clerical assistants, inspectors, and special agents as may from time to time be provided for by Congress.

557Bureaus and offices in Department#

The following-named offices, bureaus, divisions, and branches of the public service, and all that pertains to the same, shall be under the jurisdiction and supervision of the Department of Labor: 1. Bureau of Employees’ Compensation. 2. Bureau of Labor Standards. 3. Bureau of Labor Statistics. 4. Division of Public Contracts. 5. Employees’ Compensation Appeals Board. 6. United States Employment Service. 7. Wage and Hour Division. 8. Women’s Bureau.

557aMine Safety and Health Administration#

There is established in the Department of Labor a Mine Safety and Health Administration to be headed by an Assistant Secretary of Labor for Mine Safety and Health appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. The Secretary, acting through the Assistant Secretary for Mine Safety and Health, shall have authority to appoint, subject to the civil service laws, such officers and employees as he may deem necessary for the administration of this Act, and to prescribe powers, duties, and responsibilities of all officers and employees engaged in the administration of this Act. The Secretary is authorized and directed, except as specifically provided otherwise to carry out his functions under the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977 [30 U.S.C. 801 et seq.] through the Mine Safety and Health Administration.

557bOffice of disability employment policy#

Beginning in fiscal year 2001, there is established in the Department of Labor an office of disability employment policy which shall, under the overall direction of the Secretary, provide leadership, develop policy and initiatives, and award grants furthering the objective of eliminating barriers to the training and employment of people with disabilities. Such office shall be headed by an Assistant Secretary.

558Library, records, etc., of Department#

The Secretary of Labor shall have charge in the buildings or premises occupied by or appropriated to the Department of Labor, of the library, furniture, fixtures, records, and other property pertaining to it or acquired for use in its business. He shall be allowed to expend for periodicals and the purposes of the library and for rental of appropriate quarters for the accommodation of the Department of Labor within the District of Columbia, and for all other incidental expenses, such sums as Congress may provide from time to time.

559Rented quarters#

Where any office, bureau, or branch of the public service transferred to the Department of Labor by this Act is occupying rented buildings or premises, it may continue to do so until other suitable quarters are provided for its use.

560Reports and investigations#

The Secretary of Labor shall annually, at the close of each fiscal year, prepare and submit to Congress the financial statements of the Department that have been audited. He shall also, from time to time, make such special investigations and reports as he may be required to do by the President, or by Congress, or which he himself may deem necessary.

561Records and papers and furniture transferred to Department#

The official records and papers on file in and pertaining exclusively to the business of any bureau, office, department, or branch of the public service in this Act transferred to the Department of Labor, together with the furniture in use in such bureau, office, department, or branch of the public service, are transferred to the Department of Labor.

562Laws operative#

All laws prescribing the work and defining the duties of the several bureaus, offices, departments, or branches of the public service by this Act transferred to and made a part of the Department of Labor shall, so far as the same are not in conflict with the provisions of this Act, remain in full force and effect, to be executed under the direction of the Secretary of Labor.

563Working capital fund; establishment; availability; capitalization; reimbursement#

There is established a working capital fund, to be available without fiscal year limitation, for expenses necessary for the maintenance and operation of a comprehensive program of centralized services which the Secretary of Labor may prescribe and deem appropriate and advantageous to provide on a reimbursable basis: Provided, That such Working Capital Fund may receive advances and reimbursements from funds available to bureaus, offices, and agencies for which such centralized services are performed at rates which will return in full all expenses of operation, including reserves for accrued annual leave, workers’ compensation, depreciation of capitalized equipment and amortization of human resources software and systems (either acquired or donated): Provided further, That, through September 30, 2019, the Secretary of Labor may transfer an amount not to exceed $3,000,000 from unobligated balances in the Department’s salaries and expenses accounts to the Working Capital Fund, to be merged with the Working Capital Fund and used for the acquisition of capital equipment and the improvement of financial management, information technology, infrastructure technology investment activities related to support systems and modernization, and other support systems, and to remain available until expended: Provided further, That the Secretary of Labor may transfer to the Working Capital Fund, to remain available for obligation for five fiscal years after the fiscal year of such transfer, annually an amount not to exceed $9,000,000 from unobligated balances in the Department’s salaries and expenses accounts made available in Public Laws 115–245, 116–94, or 116–260, and annually an amount not to exceed $9,000,000 from unobligated balances in the Department’s discretionary grants accounts made available in Public Laws 115–245, 116–94, 116–260, for the acquisition of capital equipment and the improvement of financial management, information technology, infrastructure technology investment activities related to support systems and modernization, and other support systems: Provided further, That the Secretary of Labor may transfer to the Working Capital Fund, to remain available for obligation for five fiscal years after the fiscal year of such transfer, annually an amount not to exceed $18,000,000 from unobligated balances in the Department’s salaries and expenses accounts made available in this Act and hereafter, and $18,000,000 from unobligated balances in the Department’s discretionary grants accounts made available in this Act and hereafter for the acquisition of capital equipment and the improvement of financial management, information technology, infrastructure technology investment activities related to support systems and modernization, and other support systems: Provided further, That none of the funds transferred pursuant to the preceding proviso shall be available unless the Chief Information Officer of the Department of Labor has submitted a plan, approved by the Office of Management and Budget, describing the amounts to be transferred by account, the planned use of funds, including descriptions of projects, project status, including any scheduled delays and cost overruns, financial expenditures, planned activities, and expected benefits, to the Committees on Appropriations of the House of Representatives and the Senate by July 31 of the calendar year prior to the fiscal year in which the transfer will occur: Provided further, That the Working Capital Fund may receive reimbursements from entities or persons for use of Departmental facilities, including associated utilities and security services, and such reimbursements shall be credited to and merged with the Working Capital Fund: Provided further, That pursuant to section 11319 of title 40, the Secretary shall ensure that the Department’s Chief Information Officer shall, at a minimum, be a principal advisor to the Secretary and a member on any board or governance structure of the Department responsible for advising and setting Department-wide information technology budgets: Provided further, That none of the funds available for information technology modernization under this section or under the heading “IT Modernization” shall be used for information technology modernization projects unless an experienced project manager, employed by the Department of Labor, is assigned oversight responsibility, including but not limited to, ensuring such projects are completed within established timeframes and budgets.

563aRepealed. Pub. L. 115–245, div. B, title I, § 117(b)(2), Sept. 28, 2018, 132 Stat. 3067#

(repealed)

564Repealed. Pub. L. 115–245, div. B, title I, § 117(b)(1), Sept. 28, 2018, 132 Stat. 3067#

(repealed)

565Repealed. Pub. L. 103–382, title III, § 391(i), Oct. 20, 1994, 108 Stat. 4023#

(repealed)

566Employee drug and alcohol abuse assistance programs#

(a)The Secretary of Labor shall establish a program through which the Secretary shall provide grants to, or enter into contracts with, employers to enable such employers to develop employee drug and alcohol abuse assistance programs.

(b)Employers desiring to receive a grant or contract under this section shall submit to the Secretary of Labor, an application, in such form and containing such information as the Secretary may require.

(c)The Secretary of Labor shall promulgate regulations necessary to carry out this section.

(d)There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section, $4,000,000 for fiscal year 1989, and $5,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 1990 and 1991.

567Labor-management dispute settlement expenses#

Appropriations in this Act or subsequent Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Acts available for salaries and expenses shall be available for supplies, services, and rental of conference space within the District of Columbia, as the Secretary of Labor shall deem necessary for settlement of labor-management disputes.

568Acceptance of donations by Secretary#

The Secretary of Labor is authorized to accept, in the name of the Department of Labor, and employ or dispose of in furtherance of authorized activities of the Department of Labor, during the fiscal year ending September 30, 1995, and each fiscal year thereafter, any money or property, real, personal, or mixed, tangible or intangible, received by gift, devise, bequest, or otherwise.

569Security detail#

(a)The Secretary of Labor is authorized to employ law enforcement officers or special agents to—

(1)provide protection for the Secretary of Labor during the workday of the Secretary and during any activity that is preliminary or postliminary to the performance of official duties by the Secretary;

(2)provide protection, incidental to the protection provided to the Secretary, to a member of the immediate family of the Secretary who is participating in an activity or event relating to the official duties of the Secretary;

(3)provide continuous protection to the Secretary (including during periods not described in paragraph (1)) and to the members of the immediate family of the Secretary if there is a unique and articulable threat of physical harm, in accordance with guidelines established by the Secretary; and

(4)provide protection to the Deputy Secretary of Labor or another senior officer representing the Secretary of Labor at a public event if there is a unique and articulable threat of physical harm, in accordance with guidelines established by the Secretary.

(b)The Secretary of Labor may authorize a law enforcement officer or special agent employed under subsection (a), for the purpose of performing the duties authorized under subsection (a), to—

(1)carry firearms;

(2)make arrests without a warrant for any offense against the United States committed in the presence of such officer or special agent;

(3)perform protective intelligence work, including identifying and mitigating potential threats and conducting advance work to review security matters relating to sites and events;

(4)coordinate with local law enforcement agencies; and

(5)initiate criminal and other investigations into potential threats to the security of the Secretary, in coordination with the Inspector General of the Department of Labor.

(c)A law enforcement officer or special agent employed under subsection (a) shall exercise any authority provided under this section in accordance with any—

(1)guidelines issued by the Attorney General; and

(2)guidelines prescribed by the Secretary of Labor.

570Training for Department personnel to identify human trafficking#

(a)Not later than 180 days after October 20, 2026, the Secretary of Labor shall implement a program to provide the training and periodic continuing education described in subsection (b) to employees of the Department of Labor whom the Secretary determines should receive such training or education based on their official duties. In making such determination with respect to employees of the Wage and Hour Division, the Secretary shall consider the training and education needs of such employees operating in a State with a significant increase in oppressive child labor (as defined in section 203(l) of this title.

(b)The training and continuing education provided under the program referred to in subsection (a)—

(1)may be conducted through in-class or virtual learning capabilities; and

(2)shall include—

(A)training or continuing education that—

(i)is most appropriate for the particular location or professional environment in which the employees receiving such training or continuing education perform their official duties;

(ii)covers topics determined by the Secretary of Labor to appropriately reflect current trends and best practices for such location or environment; and

(iii)includes—

(I)the provision of current information on matters related to the detection of human trafficking to the extent relevant to the official duties of such employees, and consistent with privacy laws;

(II)methods for identifying suspected victims of human trafficking and parties who may be suspected of the trafficking activity; and

(III)a clear course of action for referring potential cases of human trafficking to the Department of Justice and other appropriate authorities, in accordance with best practices for protecting the rights of victims of human trafficking, including appropriate collaboration with victim advocacy organizations, Federal agencies, and State and local officials; and

(B)an evaluation of the training or continuing education by such employees after the completion of such training or education.

United States Government work; public domain under 17 U.S.C. § 105.