Open Government Plan
As part of the Office of Management and Budget's Open Government Directive, each agency in the Federal Government has published a plan to describe how it will improve transparency, and integrate public participation and collaboration to further its mission. Labor Department employees worked across agencies over the course of several months, incorporating stakeholder and public input in crafting the final plan. You can also learn more about the administration's comprehensive commitment to Open Government.
Take some time to read the plan and share your ideas with us. Where has DOL done well with its transparency? What steps can the Department take to expand its Open Government efforts? How can we deliver our publically-available data so that it can be used by those who need it? Post your thoughts, and dialog with others.
- Read the Executive Summary
- Read our Plan (PDF)
- Read our Plan (HTML)
Executive Summary
The United States Department of Labor impacts the lives of workers every day. From creating pathways to profitable employment and ensuring safe and healthy workplaces to protecting the rights and wages of workers and retirees across the country, serving working men and women is at the heart of our vision of "Good Jobs for Everyone."
This is our initial response to President Obama's call for "an unprecedented level of openness in government... to strengthen our democracy and promote efficiency and effectiveness in government." But this is also a response to the changing needs and expectations of workers, and it is far from complete.
As a part of these efforts, we are debuting two new online initiatives which will help improve our service to the public. Our Online Enforcement Database provides searchable access to various enforcement data — some of which was previously unpublished — in one location. Plans for the expansion of this database will open access to the raw data files and encourage collaboration through contests or prizes that highlight innovative public uses of the data. We very much want the public to play an active role in the development of this project, and encourage feedback about how they are using the data, what features they would like to see added, and how we can improve the site overall.
In addition, we are launching a new grants map to focus our attention on greater transparency into the expenditure of federal funds. This new map allows users to see where and how DOL grants are impacting their communities and will eventually help those who are interested to participate in the grant making process.
Moving forward, our expectation is that ALL the data we collect — while respecting any personally identifiable information as well as any governing legal constraints such as the Privacy Act, the Trade Secrets Act and the Confidential Information Protection and Statistical Efficiency Act — will be made public online and in downloadable formats. Accordingly, our agencies will plan internal resources, grants, contracts and budgets to support the ongoing publication of data.
The themes, elements and details of this plan were developed through a collaborative process which utilized the diverse skills of employees from across the Department, leveraged buy-in from senior leadership, and invited input from additional employees, stakeholder groups and the general public.
This plan reflects a commitment to a culture of openness within DOL and outlines a series of steps we will take to break down the barriers between the public and their Department of Labor. Doing so will lead to lasting improvements in the way we make decisions, solve problem, and addresses the challenges of working men and women.
