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Archived News Release--Caution:
information may be out of date.
For more information call: (202) 219-6611
Irasema T. Garza has taken the helm as director of the Women's Bureau of
the U.S. Department of Labor following her recent confirmation by the Senate.
In doing so she becomes one of the highest-ranking Hispanics in the Clinton
administration.
The Women's Bureau is one of the oldest agencies in the Labor
Department. Congress created the bureau in 1920 as the single federal agency
exclusively charged to foster and promote the interests of America's working
women.
Since July 1994, Garza has been secretary of the department's U.S.
National Administrative Office (NAO) which administers the North American
Agreement on Labor Cooperation. That pact is commonly known as the labor side
agreement to NAFTA. Garza was the first to head up the NAO. In that position
she was instrumental in establishing critical working procedures with her
Mexican and Canadian counterparts to handle labor issues involved in free trade
among the three NAFTA partners.
"The administration is committed to putting a human face on free trade,"
Garza said. "I intend to bring that same kind of focus to the Women's Bureau to
ensure that women fully participate in and benefit from the current economic
expansion. With the growth of free trade and globalization, there are new
challenges and new opportunities. We want to be sure America's working women
have every chance to get the best from the domestic economy and the global
economy."
From January to July 1994, Garza served as the executive director of the
Congressional Commission on Family and Medical Leave. Prior to that she
practiced law for nine years in Michigan, serving as an agency staff attorney
and later as a hearing officer for the Washtenaw County Office of the Friend of
the Court.
Throughout her professional career she has been involved in Hispanic
issues. In 1999, Hispanic magazine named her one of the top 100 most
influential Hispanics in the country.
Garza has been active with a number of labor organizations, including
the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees; she served on
the executive board of Local 2733 for seven years. She has also been a delegate
to various state and international conventions of that union.
She is a native of the Rio Grande Valley of Texas. She received her
undergraduate and law degrees from the University of Michigan. Garza currently
resides in Silver Spring, Md., with her husband, Hector, and their two
children.
Archived News Release--Caution:
information may be out of date.
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