[Excerpt] The Department of Labor (DOL) was created in 1913 by “An Act to create a Department of Labor” (P.L. 62-426). Its purpose was “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.” P.L. 62-426 initially authorized a new mediation service and four pre-existing bureaus. Numerous laws since 1913 have added program and enforcement responsibilities to DOL such that it is now comprised of multiple entities that provide services related to worker protection, income support, workforce development, and labor statistics. DOL administers and enforces more than 180 federal laws

Bradley, David H

English

[Excerpt] The Department of Labor (DOL) was created in 1913 by “An Act to create a Department of Labor” (P.L. 62-426). Its purpose was “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.” P.L. 62-426 initially authorized a new mediation service and four pre-existing bureaus. Numerous laws since 1913 have added program and enforcement responsibilities to DOL such that it is now comprised of multiple entities that provide services related to worker protection, income support, workforce development, and labor statistics. DOL administers and enforces more than 180 federal laws.CRS_IF_Major_functions_DOL.pdf: 34 downloads, before Oct. 1, 2020

Bradley, David H.

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Major Functions of the U.S. Department of Labor

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Federal Publications Key Workplace Documents 
9-7-2018 
Major Functions of the U.S. Department of Labor 
David H. Bradley 
Congressional Research Service 
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Major Functions of the U.S. Department of Labor 
Abstract 
[Excerpt] The Department of Labor (DOL) was created in 1913 by “An Act to create a Department of 
Labor” (P.L. 62-426). Its purpose was “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.” P.L. 62-426 initially authorized a new mediation service and four pre-existing bureaus. 
Numerous laws since 1913 have added program and enforcement responsibilities to DOL such that it is 
now comprised of multiple entities that provide services related to worker protection, income support, 
workforce development, and labor statistics. DOL administers and enforces more than 180 federal laws. 
Keywords 
Department of Labor, working conditions, protection, income support, workforce development 
Comments 
Suggested Citation 
Bradley, D. H. (2018). Major functions of the U.S. Department of Labor (CRS In Focus IFI0975). 
Washington, D.C.: Congressional Research Service. 
This article is available at DigitalCommons@ILR: https://digitalcommons.ilr.cornell.edu/key_workplace/2092 
www.crs.gov  |  7-5700 
 
 
 
September 7, 2018
 Major Functions of the U.S. Department of Labor
Creation of the Department of Labor 
The Department of Labor (DOL) was created in 1913 by 
“An Act to create a Department of Labor” (P.L. 62-426). Its 
purpose was “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.” P.L. 62-426 initially authorized a 
new mediation service and four pre-existing bureaus. 
Numerous laws since 1913 have added program and 
enforcement responsibilities to DOL such that it is now 
comprised of multiple entities that provide services related 
to worker protection, income support, workforce 
development, and labor statistics. DOL administers and 
enforces more than 180 federal laws. 
The Scope of DOL’s Activities 
DOL is responsible for program administration as well as 
enforcement and compliance activities. This involves not 
only administering financial resources but also the 
regulatory coverage of the numerous statutes that DOL 
administers and enforces. Unlike many federal agencies, 
DOL is not primarily a grant-making organization. While 
some of DOL’s resources support grants, the majority of its 
scope is reflected through enforcement and compliance 
activities. The extent of these activities is far-reaching. 
Broadly speaking, DOL administers programs, standards, 
and protections that have the following four foci: 
Worker Protection: DOL administers federal laws that 
establish standards related to wages (e.g., minimum wage 
levels, overtime pay), certain types of leave, and 
occupational safety affecting large shares of the private and 
public sector workforce. DOL also administers targeted 
protections, applicable to workers in certain occupations 
(e.g., miners, agricultural workers). 
Income Support: DOL oversees the administration of 
programs providing income support to individuals during 
periods of unemployment and administers programs 
providing income support to individuals suffering work-
related injuries. These programs cover much of the 
workforce. Additionally, DOL provides oversight of, and in 
some cases pays benefits for participants in, insured private 
defined-benefit pension plans. 
Workforce Development and Training: DOL provides 
grants to states to provide broadly available training and 
related services to prepare individuals for work and assist 
them in securing employment. DOL also administers 
workforce development programs services for targeted 
populations (e.g., veterans and trade-affected workers).  
Labor Statistics and Research: DOL conducts research, 
analysis, and data gathering on the nation’s labor market, 
working conditions, and prices in the economy. 
Functions of DOL 
The DOL entities that carry out the agency’s wide-ranging 
activities fall primarily into four main functional areas: 
worker protection, income support, workforce development 
and training, and labor statistics and research. 
Worker Protection 
DOL administers a range of programs to provide worker 
protection services that ensure worker safety, adherence to 
wage and overtime laws, and contract compliance. 
The Wage and Hour Division enforces various federal labor 
standards, including those authorized by the following acts: 
 The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (FLSA; P.L. 75-
718) is the primary federal law that sets minimum wage 
rates and overtime pay requirements for about 130 
million workers (more than 80% of wage and salary 
earners). 
 The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA; P.L. 103-3) 
guarantees qualifying employees unpaid, job-protected 
leave for certain family and medical reasons. Generally, 
private employers with at least 50 workers and public 
agencies are covered by the FMLA. 
 The Davis-Bacon Act (P.L. 74-403), the McNamara-
O’Hara Service Contract Act (P.L. 89-286), and the 
Walsh-Healey Public Contracts Act (P.L. 74-846), 
provide contract standards, notably prevailing wage 
requirements, for workers on certain federal contracts 
for construction, services, and manufacturing. 
 The Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker 
Protection Act (MSPA; P.L. 97-470) provides wage, 
housing, and transportation standards for migrant and 
seasonal agricultural workers. 
 Labor standards provisions in the Immigration and 
Nationality Act (INA; P.L. 99-603). The WHD 
administers and enforces these provisions for certain 
classes of nonimmigrant workers, such as those under H 
visa classes. 
The Office of Labor-Management Standards provides other 
forms of worker protection by administering the Labor-
Management Reporting and Disclosure Act of 1959 
(LMRDA; P.L. 86-257) and related laws requiring 
disclosure and financial reporting for labor unions and  
employers. 
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration 
primarily administers and enforces the Occupational Safety 
and Health Act (OSH Act; P.L. 91-596), which provides 
health and safety standards for workplaces and authorizes 
DOL to provide assistance and sanctions to enforce 
compliance. 
The Mine Safety and Health Administration administers the 
Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977 (MSH Act; 
P.L. 91-173) and the Mine Improvement and New 
Major Functions of the U.S. Department of Labor 
www.crs.gov  |  7-5700 
Emergency Response Act of 2006 (MINER Act; P.L. 109-
236), both of which provide safety and health standards for 
occupations in the mining industry. 
The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs  
enforces federal contractors’ compliance with 
nondiscrimination requirements under three federal 
authorities: Executive Order 11246, Section 503 of the 
Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (P.L. 93-112), and the Vietnam 
Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act of 1974 (P.L. 
93-508). 
The Office of Foreign Labor Certification is responsible for 
implementing parts of the INA related to certifying labor 
for employment-based immigration. Specifically, it 
determines if there would be an adverse impact on similar 
U.S. workers if a labor certification were granted. 
The Bureau of International Labor Affairs monitors and 
enforces the labor provisions of several laws related to U.S. 
trade agreements and trade preference programs, reports on 
child labor and human trafficking, and represents U.S. 
interests on labor issues at multilateral institutions (e.g., G-
7, International Labor Organization). 
Income Support 
DOL administers income security programs, including the 
Federal-State Unemployment Compensation (UC) program 
(Title III of the Social Security Act, P.L. 74-271), certain 
provisions of the Employee Retirement Income Security 
Act (ERISA; P.L. 93-406), and various workers’ 
compensation programs. 
The UC system is a joint federal-state program that 
provides income support through benefit payments to 
qualifying individuals who have become unemployed. Its 
framework is established in federal law, while most of the 
benefit payments are funded by state unemployment taxes. 
DOL provides administrative grants to states and enforces 
compliance of federal laws at the state level. The UC 
program covers approximately 140 million workers. 
Through the Employee Benefits Security Administration, 
DOL ensures compliance with ERISA—which includes 
recovering losses to employee benefit plans resulting from 
violations of ERISA—and audits the federal Thrift Savings 
Plan (TSP). Relatedly, the Pension Benefit Guaranty 
Corporation (PBGC), which is a federal corporation 
established under ERISA, pays benefits to participants in 
private-sector defined-benefit pensions whose companies or 
plans are unable to pay benefits. Although PBGC’s 
operations are financed by insurance premiums from 
participating pension plans, its insurance premiums are set 
by congressional action and its board is chaired by the 
Secretary of Labor. 
The Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs  
administers four federal statutes that provide benefits for 
certain employees injured on the job: the Federal 
Employees’ Compensation Act (FECA; P.L. 93-416), the 
Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act 
(LHWCA; P.L. 69-803), the Black Lung Benefits Act 
(BLBA; P.L. 92-303), and the Energy Employees 
Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act 
(EEOICPA; P.L. 106-398). 
Workforce Development and Training 
Workforce development programs provide a combination of 
education and training services to prepare individuals for 
work and to help them improve their prospects in the labor 
market. These services may include job search assistance, 
career counseling, occupational skill training, classroom 
training, or on-the-job training. 
The Employment and Training Administration provides 
workforce development activities through programs 
including those authorized by the following acts: 
 The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act 
(WIOA; P.L. 113-128) is the primary federal workforce 
development legislation. It authorizes several programs 
and provides universal access to a range of workforce 
development activities. In addition, WIOA establishes 
the One-Stop system, through which several other 
workforce and related DOL and non-DOL programs are 
coordinated. 
 The Wagner-Peyser Act (WPA; P.L. 73-30) authorizes 
the Employment Service, which provides universally 
accessible labor exchange services (i.e., matching 
employers and workers) and conducts the work tests for 
state unemployment compensation systems. 
 Trade Adjustment Assistance for Workers (TAA; Title 
II of P.L. 93-618) provides funding for retraining and 
income support to eligible workers who have been 
dislocated due to trade-related causes. 
 The Community Service Employment for Older 
Americans (CSEOA; Title V of P.L. 114-144) program 
funds part-time, paid community service positions for 
low-income individuals age 55 and over. 
The Veterans’ Employment and Training Service  
administers several programs to provide employment 
services specifically for veterans, such as the Jobs for 
Veterans State Grants program (P.L. 107-288), which funds 
specialists in One-Stop centers to help veterans find 
employment. It also administers the Uniformed Services 
Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (P.L. 103-353) 
and the Veterans’ Preference program (P.L. 105-339). 
Labor Statistics and Research 
DOL’s Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) collects, analyzes, 
and disseminates data on the labor market, working 
conditions, and prices in the economy. BLS, created in 
1884 as part of the Department of the Interior, was 
transferred to DOL when it was created in 1913. BLS 
produces monthly data on economic indicators, such as the 
unemployment rate, wage and employment levels, and price 
indices. It also produces analytical reports and supplemental 
surveys of various labor market indicators. Many of these 
indicators are used in other federal programs to allot 
funding or make cost-of-living adjustments. 
In addition, the Women’s Bureau and the Office of 
Disability Employment Policy conduct research and 
develop policies to improve labor market outcomes for 
women and individuals with disabilities, respectively. 
David H. Bradley, dbradley@crs.loc.gov, 7-7352 
IF10975 


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