Meet Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis
Secretary Hilda L. Solis was confirmed as Secretary of Labor on February 24, 2009. Prior to confirmation as Secretary of Labor, Secretary Solis represented the 32nd Congressional District in California, a position she held from 2001 – 2009.
In the Congress, Solis’ priorities included expanding access to affordable health care, protecting the environment, and improving the lives of working families. A recognized leader on clean energy jobs, she authored the Green Jobs Act which provided funding for “green” collar job training for veterans, displaced workers, at risk youth, and individuals in families under 200 percent of the federal poverty line.
In 2007, Solis was appointed to the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe (the Helsinki Commission), as well as the Mexico — United States Interparliamentary Group. In June 2007, Solis was elected Vice Chair of the Helsinki Commission's General Committee on Democracy, Human Rights and Humanitarian Questions. She was the only U.S. elected official to serve on this Committee.
A nationally recognized leader on the environment, Solis became the first woman to receive the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award in 2000 for her pioneering work on environmental justice issues. Her California environmental justice legislation, enacted in 1999, was the first of its kind in the nation to become law.
Solis was first elected to public office in 1985 as a member of the Rio Hondo Community College Board of Trustees. She served in the California State Assembly from 1992 to 1994, and in 1994 made history by becoming the first Latina elected to the California State Senate. As the chairwoman of the California Senate Industrial Relations Committee, she led the battle to increase the state's minimum wage from $4.25 to $5.75 an hour in 1996. She also authored a record seventeen state laws aimed at combating domestic violence.
Solis graduated from California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, and earned a Master of Public Administration from the University of Southern California. A former federal employee, she worked in the Carter White House Office of Hispanic Affairs and was later appointed as a management analyst with the Office of Management and Budget in the Civil Rights Division.
She was nominated by President Barack Obama to serve as Secretary of Labor on January 20, 2009.
Secretary Solis in Action
Photos of the Secretary:
- Secretary Solis and Congressman Ruben Hinojosa at the podium; September 28, 2009"
- At the the Hispanic Engineering Science and Technology Conference (HESTEC) - Secretary Solis is at the podium; September 28, 2009"
- At the Clinton Global Initiative in New York City - Secretary Solis talks with fellow panelists; September 24, 2009"
- At the 19th Annual Economic Summit in San Diego - Secretary Solis flanked by two ment; September 18, 2009
- Moderating a panel discussion of the trailer for the upcoming documentary, The Harvest - David Strauss (Association of Farmworker Opportunity Programs), Mark Lara (Wage & Hour Division Investigator), Secretary Solis, and Dolores Huerta (United Farm Workers); September 16, 2009
- Visiting veterans in Las Vegas in observance of September 11th - Group photo with Secretary Solis flanked by program staff; September 11, 2009
- At the Bittersweet Harvest: The Bracero Program Exhibit - Secretary Solis is reviewing an exhibit; September 9, 2009
- Visiting Rhode Island Job Corps Center - Secretary Solis is discussing safety equipment with Job Corps students; September 8, 2009
- Visiting Chicago for Labor Day Activities - Secretary Solis is holding a frame with a poster in it, standing with two men in front of a banner that reads AFGE; September 2, 2009
- Visiting the Potomac Job Corps Center - Secretary Solis is standing with a student who is demonstrating electrical wiring techniques; August 11, 2009
- At the National Clean Energy Summit - Secretary Solis is flanked by Al Gore and T. Boone Pickens; August 10, 2009
- Groundbreaking at Ottumwa, Iowa Job Corps Center - Secretary Solis is posing with other officials, all holding shovels; August 9, 2009
- Touring a West Virginia Coal Mine - Secretary Solis is in wearing protective gear and talking with two men; August 4, 2009
- Speaking at the National Council of La Raza Conference - Secretary Solis is at the podium; July 26, 2009
- Visiting students at the University of Kansas Medical Center - Secretary Solis is with nursing students and hospitial personnel; July 21, 2009
- Discussing the President's recovery plans with other Cabinet members; July 20, 2009
- Hosting the World Day Against Child Labor Roundtable at DOL - Secretary Solis is pictured with Senator Tom Harkin and other panel members; June 10, 2009
- Hosting a roundtable on women and green jobs - Secretary Solis is seated with panel members and attendees;April 22, 2009
- Addressing the Senate HELP Committee - Secretary Solis is pictured at a table while delivering testimony; April 21, 2009
For more information about the Secretary, contact:
U.S. Department of Labor
200 Constitution Ave., NW
Washington,
DC 20210
(202) 693-6000
E-mail Secretary Solis at talktosolis@dol.gov.
