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OPA News Release: [06/20/2004]
Contact Name: Lisa Kruska
Phone Number: (202) 693-4676

U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao to Visit China with High Level U.S. Department of Labor Delegation

Four-Day Trip to Highlight Expanded Efforts to Strengthen Worker Protections

BEIJING—U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao will visit China this week with a high-level United States Department of Labor Delegation to discuss labor and employment issues. Secretary Chao is the first U.S. Labor Secretary to make an official visit to China since 1988. Accompanying Secretary Chao are four Assistant Secretaries: Assistant Secretary for Employment Standards Administration Victoria A. Lipnic, Assistant Secretary for Employee Benefits Security Administration Ann L. Combs, Assistant Secretary for Occupational Safety and Health Administration John Henshaw, and Assistant Secretary for Mine Safety and Health Administration Dave D. Lauriski.

“In the past 25 years, considerable progress has been made in the standard of living and working conditions of the Chinese people. As China undergoes its explosive economic growth, we are committed to working with China to help improve the working conditions of its workers to keep pace with its overall economic development,” said U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao.

Secretary Chao will participate in a number of joint events with U.S. Secretary of Commerce Don Evans who is also visiting China during the same period. Some of these joint events will include high-level meetings with Chinese officials, tours of U.S. companies with facilities in China and other events. Secretary Chao will also tour a training center for rural women and visit an orphanage of disabled children.

“The continued cooperation between our two nations will expand upon the ongoing projects undertaken during this Administration and explore new opportunities to ensure working conditions keep pace with China’s economic development” added Secretary Chao.

Secretary Chao’s delegation’s visit constitutes the most comprehensive engagement ever by the United States with China on labor issues. The visit is part of an ongoing review of America’s economic relationship with China, and reflects an ever-increasing level of engagement on these issues that started earlier in this Administration with a $4.1 million grant from the U.S. Department of Labor to develop The Rule of Law Project with China. In addition to the $4.1 million grant, the U.S. Department of Labor, working with The Chinese State Administration for Work Safety, also funded a $2.3 million grant to enhance Mine Safety and Health in China in late 2002.

Secretary Chao is the nation’s 24^th Secretary of Labor, representing a new generation of American leadership. Secretary Chao is the first American woman of Asian descent appointed to a United States President’s cabinet in history. When President George W. Bush nominated Secretary Chao, he described her as an individual with “strong executive talent, compassion, and commitment to helping people build better lives.”

Since her confirmation by the United States Senate on January 29, 2001, she has been dedicated to carrying out the Department of Labor’s mission of inspiring and protecting the hardworking people of America. She is respected as an effective and articulate champion of the nation's contemporary workforce, acting quickly to focus the Labor Department on the modern realities of workers’ lives in the 21^st Century workplace.

Secretary Chao’s compassionate nature stems from her family’s experience transitioning to mainstream culture in a new country, supported by one another and the kindness of friends and neighbors. This inspired her to dedicate most of her professional life to ensuring that people have the opportunity to pursue lives of dignity and financial independence.

As Director of the United States Peace Corps, she established programs to help the peoples in the Baltic nations of Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia and the newly independent states of the former Soviet Union. Later, as President and Chief Executive Officer of United Way of America, she restored public trust and confidence after the organization was tarnished by mismanagement and financial abuse, thus preserving the nation's largest institution of private charitable giving.

Secretary Chao received her Masters in Business Administration (M.B.A.) from the Harvard University Graduate School of Business and her undergraduate degree in economics from Mount Holyoke College. She also studied at M.I.T., Dartmouth College, and Columbia University.

Active in many volunteer activities, Secretary Chao has received numerous awards for her professional accomplishments and community service. She is the recipient of 24 honorary doctoral degrees from colleges and universities around the world.

Additional information on the U.S. Department of Labor is available on the department website www.dol.gov. A copy of Secretary Chao’s biography is located on the department website.

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