Speeches by Secretary Elaine L. Chao

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Remarks Prepared for Delivery by
U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao
American Gas Association Safety Leadership Summit
Washington, D.C.
Wednesday, December 5, 2007

Thank you, Dave [Parker, President, American Gas Association]

This afternoon, let me share some thoughts on the state of the U.S. economy, how we are helping to increase the safety and competitiveness of our nation's workforce — including workers in the energy sector — and how working together can further advance our goals.

The fundamentals of our nation's economy remain healthy despite challenges in the housing and financial credit markets, record oil prices, and declining consumer confidence. More than 8.3 million new jobs have been created since August 2003. That's more than the Eurozone and Japan combined.

The unemployment rate remains a low 4.7 percent, which is a full point lower than the average 5.7 percent unemployment rate of the 1990s. And the real measure of confidence is consumer spending, which has been notably healthier than expected so far this holiday season.

This shows, once again, how diverse and resilient our economy despite these challenges. Job growth continues to grow. The third quarter GDP growth of 4.9 percent was stronger than expected. A big contributor to 3rd quarter GDP growth was rising exports, which now comprise a record 12.1 percent of GDP.

Experience shows that, even when the economy is hit with challenges, the fundamental strengths of our system enable our country to rebound back to the long-term path of expansion and rising prosperity. Temporary economic challenges should not deter our country's commitment to preserve economic freedoms.

However, as the U.S. continues to transition to a knowledge-based economy, one of the challenges that exist is the skills gap. The skills gap is an increasing mismatch between the skills of some in our workforce and the skills needed for jobs in growing sectors of the economy. In fact, as our country continues to transition to a knowledge-based economy, nearly two-thirds of the new jobs created over the decade ending in 2014 will require some kind of post-secondary education or training. That's primarily because technology is transforming the workplace. It has raised the level of technical proficiency that workers need in every sector — including energy. If America is to remain competitive, workers need access to education and training to continually update their skills. Furthermore, a well-trained workforce has a direct impact on an improved safety record.

Job training and education continue to be a priority of this Administration. That's why in 2003, President George W. Bush, through the Labor Department, launched a series of initiatives to expand workers' access to post-secondary education and training. Linking the publicly-funded workforce system with employers — like you — provides access to needed workers to fill available jobs. The Department has provided seed capital and encouraged key players at the regional level to come together and create an economic development strategy centered around talent and skills development.

Let me also update you on an important topic that I know you are concerned about. As many of you know, the Labor Department is one of the largest regulatory agencies in the federal government. The Department regulates virtually every workplace in America for health, safety, wages, and hours worked.

Workplace laws can be written and enforced in a way that hampers growth and job creation. Or, they can be written and enforced in a way that empowers workers and employers to succeed in the 21st century economy. And, this Administration's strategy in this new century has been to empower workers and employers.

The goal is to help workers and employers understand their safety and health responsibilities, so workplace hazards and violations can be prevented. Most people want to comply with the law, so to help the regulated community, the Department in 2001, developed new cutting-edge tools to provide employers, workers, job-seekers, and retirees with clear and easy-to-access information on federal employment laws. This is all part of the strategy of creating a culture of safety in workplaces across the country.

We call this preventative approach compliance assistance. It is important to note that our compliance assistance efforts are not intended to replace enforcement programs. But we do believe that in addition to enforcement, it is our responsibility to make sure workers and employers know and understand what they need to do to comply with the law.

The Department's website, www.dol.gov, now provides detailed information on how workers and employers must comply with wage and hour regulations, workplace safety and health, cooperative programs, and employee benefits regulations.

A second part of our compliance assistance strategy was to increase the Department's cooperative health and safety partnerships with employers, workers, and unions. We believed that we could achieve better results in protecting workers by encouraging employers and workers to work together to prevent problems from occurring in the first place.

As a result of these efforts, together with aggressive, targeted enforcement, the Department has been able to achieve record results in worker protection without imposing significant new costs that hamper job growth. The Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) has helped bring injury and illness rates down to record low levels — down 13 percent since 2001. The Department's Wage and Hour division has recovered record back wages for workers — more than $1 billion since the start of this Administration.

As part of the Department's efforts to provide useful information, OSHA has also created a user-friendly website at www.osha.gov. It contains a wealth of information about occupational safety and health, including web-based, interactive training tools on occupational safety and health topics, known as "eTools." They put information about computer workstations, evacuation plans and procedures, respiratory protections, safety and health management systems, and many other important issues at your fingertips.

Also on OSHA's website are over 170 Safety and Health Topics pages. These in-depth, comprehensive tools offer a wide variety of information on more than 150 industries and relevant hazards. They address topics such as ergonomics, blood borne pathogens, silica, asbestos, first aid, and more. In addition, the website provides comprehensive reference materials and industry-specific information such as oil and gas drilling standards and solutions for working in the confined spaces of above-ground storage tanks.

Today, the Department has the largest number of safety and health partnerships in its history.

The Department of Labor's cooperative programs have been very successful in fostering a culture of workplace safety and health. The Voluntary Protection Programs (VPP) promote effective worksite-based safety and health through cooperative relationships between management, labor, and OSHA. Acceptance into the program is recognition of outstanding efforts by employers and employees who have achieved exemplary occupational safety and health practices. In 2006, VPP worksites have injury and illness rates that are 53 percent lower, thus saving employers $243 million by avoiding lost time injuries.

As a result of these efforts, together with aggressive, targeted enforcement, the Department has been able to achieve record results in worker protection without imposing unnecessary new costs that hamper job growth. OSHA has helped bring injury and illness rates down to record low levels — down 17 percent since 2002. Injury and illness rates in your industry have also declined over the past couple of years. For example, the rate of injuries and illnesses in natural gas distribution declined 3.0 percent from 2004 to 2006. However, from 2005 to 2006, overall fatalities in oil and gas extraction and drilling, and natural gas distribution increased by more than 14 percent. And I know that's why you created this conference and why all of you thought it was important to be here today.

Currently, government and industry are working together through OSHA's cooperative programs to achieve safe and healthy workplaces. In the same way, employers and workers must work together to foster a culture of workplace safety and health in an organization.

This takes leadership. When the top executives insist on excellence — not only in quality and productivity, but also in the company's safety and health record — the shift in the organization's attitude can be remarkable.

Inculcating an organization with a culture of safety requires instituting and promoting safety education and training sessions, and appearing alongside safety managers to help present the message. It includes setting goals for safety and health improvement and carefully monitoring progress. And as an organization, it's important to reward employee initiative and to place an emphasis on safety and health at employee meetings. To make safety a number one priority, it must become a core value of the organization.

As leaders, you should be the example behind the change. With this conference, all of you are showing a commitment to making safety a top priority.

Inculcating a culture of safety in an organization means setting goals for safety and health improvement and carefully monitoring progress. Executive leadership includes instituting and promoting safety education and training sessions, and appearing alongside safety managers to help present the message — just as you are today. It's important to reward employee initiative and to place an emphasis on safety and health at employee meetings.

As leaders, you must be the example behind the change. With this conference, all of you are showing a commitment to making safety a top priority.

The Department of Labor's goal is to see that every employer in the nation recognizes that occupational safety and health adds value to business, work, and life.

Today, companies in the United States are making difficult decisions about investments that will affect current employment as well as future job growth. So it's worth noting that improving safety and health programs in the workplace is not only an employer's legal responsibility — it also makes good business sense. In its 2005 Workplace Safety Index, Liberty Mutual estimated that employers pay almost $1 billion per week to injured employees and their medical care providers. Of course, no price can be placed on the most important benefit, and that is, to see every worker return home safely to their loved ones at the end of each day. Because in the increasingly global economy, human capital is our most precious resource.

America's workforce is the backbone of America's economy. And the economy is strong because our workforce is among the most innovative and productive in the world. Our country's greatest strengths lie in our democratic institutions, respect for the rule of law, transparency, accountability, and the most creative and compassionate workforce in the world. These unique qualities are America's strongest competitive advantage.

So looking ahead, there is great reason for optimism as our country faces new challenges and opportunities. And by continuing to emphasize education, job training, and safety, we can empower workers and increase access to opportunity.

Thank you, and have a great meeting. Now I'll be happy to take your questions.

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