Harris's first assignment as the department's top operations and management officer will be to rebuild morale after years of funding cuts and Bush administration neglect. "There are morale and structural issues to be addressed," he says. "The department is a federation of agencies. Some of them were more well managed during the Bush years and some of them were less well managed." He pointed to the workforce protection agencies, including the Wage and Hour Division, as places that are particularly in need. Harris is up to the challenge. The 46-year-old New York native ran President Obama's labor, education, and transportation transition team and worked on his presidential campaign. Before joining the campaign, he headed New York Law School's labor and employment law programs. He also worked in President Clinton's Labor Department, serving as counselor to the secretary. A graduate of Cornell University's School of Industrial and Labor Relations, he holds a law degree from New York University.
Established: 1913
Address: 200 Constitution Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20210
Phone: 866-487-2365
2009 Budget: $126.3 billion
Employment: 15,385
Web Site: www.dol.gov
Functions: The Labor Department administers and enforces statutes that promote the welfare of U.S. wage earners, improve their working conditions, and advance their opportunities for profitable employment. The department operates unemployment compensation systems; conducts job-training programs; regulates pension funds; enforces minimum-wage and other labor laws; and collects, analyzes, and publishes labor and economic statistics.
