Benefits.gov provides enhanced search tools to navigate government programs

WASHINGTON — Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis today, through a national online discussion with stakeholder groups, the general public and the news media, outlined the president's fiscal year (FY) 2011 budget request for the U.S. Department of Labor, which is built around the vision of "good jobs for everyone." The budget launches innovative ways to prepare workers for 21st century jobs, and makes new investments in programs that protect workers' rights, safety and health in the new economy.

WASHINGTON — Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis today, through a national online discussion with stakeholder groups, the general public and the news media, will outline the president's fiscal year (FY) 2010 budget for the U.S. Department of Labor, which begins to restore worker protection programs and revitalize employment opportunities for the American workforce.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor continued to demonstrate excellence in reporting on program and financial performance by earning a number one ranking in an annual competition of the 24 largest federal agencies. George Mason University's Mercatus Center announced the results of its 10th annual Performance Report Scorecard on May 5.

Official U.S. benefits Web site marks 7th anniversary by launching Twitter account

WASHINGTON — GovBenefits.gov, a collaborative effort of 17 federal agencies with content on more than 1,000 benefits and assistance programs, today is launching a Twitter account to provide continuous updates about the Web site's resources. In this time of economic uncertainty, it is more important than ever to meet citizen demand for information about available benefits.

Award committee lauds accessibility and visibility through digitization, lecture series efforts

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor's Wirtz Labor Library has been selected by the American Library Association as the winner of the 2009 John Sessions Memorial Award, which honors a library or library system’s significant work with the labor community that has brought recognition to the history and contributions of the labor movement toward the development of the United States.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor's Frances Perkins Building, a two million-square-foot office building, recently was cited for earning the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) prestigious Energy Star, the national symbol for superior energy efficiency and environmental protection.

To qualify for the designation, a facility or building must use an average of 40 percent less energy and release 35 percent less carbon dioxide into the environment compared with typical buildings.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor today announced that it will launch an online digital library to archive its Web sites under a contract with the San Francisco-based Internet Archive.

Through an on-demand system, the Web Snapshot Initiative was designed to capture the content of all departmental Web sites for historical purposes — thus documenting the department's missions, goals and programs on the site as of mid-January 2009.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor is among 10 agencies selected to receive this year's Government Computer News (GCN) Award, which recognizes federal, state and local government for extraordinary information technology accomplishments and significant contributions to agency performance. The Labor Department is being recognized for its GovBenefits.gov Web site, an E-Gov program.

WASHINGTON — A newly designed version of the U.S. Social Security Administration's (SSA) online Benefit Eligibility Screening Tool (BEST) application, powered by the U.S. Department of Labor-managed GovBenefits.gov, has been launched to make it easier for individuals to determine their eligibility for 17 different Social Security programs.

WASHINGTON — U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao today announced that the 19th annual Labor Hall of Fame induction ceremony will be held on Tuesday, Nov. 13, at 2:30 p.m. EST, in the Great Hall of the department’s headquarters building in Washington, D.C. The ceremony will honor Adolphus Busch, founder of Anheuser-Busch Brewing Co., and William B. Wilson, the first U.S. secretary of labor and former secretary-treasurer of the United Mine Workers of America.

OASAM News Release: [04/04/2006] Contact Name: Peggy Abrahamson or Public Affairs Phone Number: 202-693-7909 or 202-693-4676 Release Number: 06-595-NAT

WASHINGTON — As the weather grows cooler, many greet the coming winter months with anticipation of family gatherings, good food and the exchange of gifts. For others, the winter can be particularly challenging, with higher heating costs, the need for warmer clothes and other financial pressures. For those in need of assistance, the GovBenefits.gov website provides a valuable service by identifying potential benefit options available to citizens.

WASHINGTON — As baseball excitement soars with the start of the playoffs, the San Francisco Giants' unsecured playoff spot has halted Barry Bonds' home run battle for another season, but his record stands among the few truly elite who have reached 700 home runs—Hank Aaron, Babe Ruth and GovBenefits.gov. GovBenefits.gov hasn't been around as long as those legendary sluggers, but this website's 712 federal and state benefit programs are a home run for all citizens.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) today began a Back-to-School campaign aimed at highlighting education- and school-related benefit programs that can be found at www.Benefits.gov, an award-winning website that enables citizens to determine their potential eligibility for more than 400 federal benefits programs and more than 200 state benefit programs.

Labor “Green” Across-the-Board for Progress on President’s Management Agenda Scorecard

WASHINGTON—The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) recently achieved the highest rating for the Strategic Management of Human Capital component of the President’s Management Agenda. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) raised the Department’s status to the top rating of “green” for DOL’s accomplishments in the strategic management of human capital in its most recent quarterly scorecard.

Site Now Includes Information on 48 State and 419 Federal Programs

DOL Ranked Overall Winner in E-Government Performance

WASHINGTON—The U.S. Department of Labor continues to heed President George W. Bush’s call that “(g)overnment should be results-oriented—guided not by process but guided by performance.”

WASHINGTON—U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao today announced the appointment of Jose (Joe) A. Lira as director of the Department of Labor’s Office of Small Business Programs (OSBP).

“Small business employers are responsible for the majority of new jobs created in this country. Joe has years of knowledge and experience in helping small business employers and entrepreneurs grow their businesses and create jobs. Small business employers and workers will benefit from Joe’s diverse skills in the public, private and nonprofit sectors,” said Secretary Chao.