U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao

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Remarks as Prepared

Hispanic Heritage Month Kick-off
Frances Perkins Building
U.S. Department of Labor
Washington, D.C.
September 17, 2003

Good afternoon, and thank you, Joe [Lira]. Joe is the new Director of our Office of Small Business Programs.

First, let me thank the Hispanic Heritage Month Committee who has worked so hard to make this occasion and so many others during this month a success. Just yesterday we had Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Nilo Cruz here and there are so many great events on the schedule in the coming weeks.

Every year, we celebrate the heritage and achievements of the Hispanic community, and here at the Department, we are proud of the many Hispanic Americans who are part of our leadership team.

Let me acknowledge Fred Juarbe, who could not be with us today, the DOL Assistant Secretary for Veterans Employment and Training.

There are more than 1,100 other Hispanic Americans at all levels, including the Senior Executive Service, are making important contributions to the Department of Labor. In fact, I am proud that the Labor Department is one of the top five executive departments in terms of the number of Hispanic Americans in our workforce.

We continue to work closely with Hispanic American organizations to increase their access to career-building opportunities. And to build the next generation of leaders, we have close relationship with the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities and others to reach out to young Hispanic-Americans and tell them about the opportunities available in our intern program. This year alone, we have welcomed over 50 interns of Hispanic descent.

We’re also working with the National Society of Hispanic MBAs to further the pool of talent for our new MBA Fellows program. Seventeen Hispanics are now participating in a number of our DOL-wide career development programs, including the MBA program and the SES candidate development initiative.

This is timely, because nearly 17 percent of the Department’s Hispanic employees are eligible to take early retirement—so we need to reach out to the Hispanic community in every way we can.

We can be proud that the Department’s programs and protections are increasingly becoming accessible to those with limited English proficiency. We have instituted a toll-free number for Spanish speakers and launched a Web site that is available in multiple languages, including Spanish.

Equally important, we are making sure that the most vulnerable immigrants, including Hispanics Americans with limited English skills, are paid and treated fairly. In fact, Wage & Hour has nearly 400 Spanish speaking investigators to help ensure that all workers—regardless of immigration status—are paid a full day’s wage for a full day’s work.

As you may know, at my request, OSHA—which employs 179 fluent Spanish-speaking employees—has an ambitious plan to translate dozens of health and safety materials into Spanish and distribute them throughout the workplace.

Recently, they sent a national public service announcement to over 650 Spanish radio stations across the country to further lower accidents and injuries. I am delighted to report that fatal work injuries among Hispanic workers, which had been rising each year since 1995, were down 6 percent in 2002.

These are all just examples of the fact that this Administration and this President are committed to ensuring equal access to opportunity for Hispanic Americans.

President George W. Bush has a deep understanding and appreciation of Hispanic culture and has appointed more Americans of Hispanic descent to top positions in government than any other president in history. So thanks to President Bush, Hispanic-American voices are being heard at the highest level of our federal government.

As an immigrant myself, I too am delighted to join you in saluting the proud history and tremendous contributions that Hispanic Americans have made to our country. I share your goal in ensuring that Hispanic Americans participate fully in every chapter of that story in the years to come.

I hope each of you will take advantage of the many events celebrating Hispanic heritage during this month-long celebration.

I am pleased to inaugurate one of those events now, by introducing our next speaker. I am so pleased to introduce to you the Honorable Alberto Gonzales, Assistant to the President of the United States and White House Counsel.

Prior to joining President Bush’s team, Judge Gonzales served as a key member of Governor Bush’s team in Texas as Secretary of State and as a Justice on the Texas Supreme Court.

Born in San Antonio and raised in Houston, he is a veteran of the U.S. Air Force, and a graduate of Rice University and Harvard Law School.

He is an example of the best and the brightest this country has to offer. Please join me in welcoming him to the Department of Labor as our keynote speaker for 2003 Hispanic Heritage Month.

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Thank you, Judge Gonzales, for making time to be with us today.

It is now my pleasure to present you with this framed poster commemorating Hispanic Heritage Month. The picture was designed by one of our DOL employees, Robert Ortiz, and we ask you to accept it with our thanks.

It is now my pleasure to present a special award to Daliza Salas, our own DOL Director of Human Resources.

Daliza was recognized as one of the 100 top Latinas in the nation in the June issue of Hispanic Magazine, and I am delighted to present her with this framed copy of the cover page commemorating this achievement.

Congratulations, Daliza.

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