WASHINGTON – Acting Secretary of Labor Seth D. Harris today issued the following statement on the death of Sen. Frank R. Lautenberg of New Jersey:

"This morning, New Jersey and the nation lost a true statesman and a powerful progressive voice. Throughout nearly three decades in the United States Senate, Frank Lautenberg was an unrelenting champion for working people, social justice, environmental protection, public health and, most important, the people of his beloved New Jersey.

WASHINGTON – Acting Secretary of Labor Seth D. Harris issued the following statement about the April 2013 Employment Situation report released today:

WASHINGTON – Acting Secretary of Labor Seth D. Harris today issued the following statement regarding Wednesday's deadly building collapse in Bangladesh:

"Yesterday, well over 200 people, many of them young garment workers, lost their lives in the collapse of the Rana Plaza building in the Savar section of Dhaka, Bangladesh. I join U.S. Ambassador to Bangladesh Dan M. Mozena in offering my condolences to the victims, their families and the people of Bangladesh.

WASHINGTON – Acting Secretary of Labor Seth D. Harris today released the U.S. Department of Labor's fiscal year 2014 budget request, which supports President Obama's plan to strengthen the economy and grow the middle class through continued investments in training and resources for job seekers.

WASHINGTON – Acting Secretary of Labor Seth D. Harris will host a Web-based question-and-answer session on the U.S. Department of Labor's fiscal year 2014 budget request at 2:45 p.m. EDT on Wednesday, April 10. He will be joined by assistant secretaries and senior staff.

Information about the department's fiscal year 2014 budget request will be posted at http://www.dol.gov/budget/ at or about 1:30 p.m. EDT on April 10.

WASHINGTON – Acting Secretary of Labor Seth D. Harris issued the following statement about the March 2013 Employment Situation report released today:

"With the addition of 95,000 new private sector jobs in March, we see more evidence that the U.S. economy continues to bounce back, but not quickly enough for too many middle-class families. The unemployment rate ticked downward slightly to 7.6 percent, the seventh consecutive month below 8 percent.

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor today announced the availability of approximately $26 million in grants to improve the long-term labor market prospects of youth involved in the juvenile justice system. The "Face Forward"grants are designed to give youth a chance at success by offering support services, training and skills development that can help them obtain employment and overcome the stigma of a juvenile record.

WASHINGTON – Acting Secretary of Labor Seth D. Harris today issued the following statement regarding passage in the House of Representatives of the Supporting Knowledge and Investing in Lifelong Skills Act:

"Strengthening the American workforce development system is critical to sustaining our economic recovery and continuing the growth of middle-class jobs.

WASHINGTON – Acting Secretary of Labor Seth D. Harris issued the following statement about the February 2013 Employment Situation report released today.

"This morning's report shows a resilient economy continuing to recover. The economy added 236,000 new nonfarm payroll jobs last month. February marks three uninterrupted years of private sector employment growth, with a total of 6.4 million jobs created over that time.

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics has released a report titled "Characteristics of Minimum Wage Workers: 2012." The report shows that 75.3 million workers in the United States age 16 and over were paid at hourly rates, representing 59 percent of all wage and salary workers. Among those paid by the hour, 1.6 million earned exactly the prevailing federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour. About 2 million had wages below the federal minimum.

WASHINGTON – Acting Secretary of Labor Seth D. Harris issued the following statement on the January 2013 Employment Situation report released today:

"This morning's report shows solid, steady growth in jobs. The economy added 157,000 nonfarm payroll jobs in January, while the unemployment rate was unchanged at7.9 percent.

WASHINGTON – Deputy Secretary of Labor Seth D. Harris has issued the following statement regarding the Bureau of Labor Statistics report released today on union membership in 2012:

"Today the Bureau of Labor Statistics announced that, in 2012, the unionization rate of employed wage and salary workers was 11.3 percent. Among private sector employees, the rate was 6.6 percent.

WASHINGTON – Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis today issued the following statement regarding the retirement of Sen. Jay Rockefeller:

WASHINGTON – Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis this afternoon sent the following letter to employees at the U.S. Department of Labor:

"Over the Christmas and New Year holidays with my family in California, I enjoyed my first opportunity in years to reflect on the past and my future, with an open mind and an open heart. After much discussion with family and close friends, I have decided to begin a new future, and return to the people and places I love and that have inspired and shaped my life.

WASHINGTON – Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis issued the following statement on the December 2012 Employment Situation report released today:

"December's report marks 34 straight months of private sector job growth, which have added close to 5.8 million jobs. For nearly three years, steady gains have occurred across different sectors of the economy, and December finishes a strong year of consistent growth with average increases of about 160,000 private sector jobs per month in 2012.

WASHINGTON – U.S. Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis today released the following statement on the death of Lucille Beserra Roybal:

WASHINGTON – Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis today issued the following statement on the death of Sen. Daniel Inouye:

"I want to express my deepest and most heartfelt condolences to the family and friends of my former congressional colleague, Sen. Daniel Inouye. Words cannot express how saddened I was to learn of his passing.

"In so many ways, Sen. Inouye has influenced my career in public service. During my very first days on Capitol Hill, I remember thinking about the legacy he had already created – and about how I could learn from him.

WASHINGTON – Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis today issued the following statement regarding the death of James Hodgson on Nov. 28, as reported by his family today:

"James Hodgson once said: 'I've never had any ambitions; only enthusiasms.'

"He was being modest, of course, since one of his 'enthusiasms' was worker health and safety. And as the nation's 12th secretary of labor, he leaves an extraordinary legacy in this area.

WASHINGTON – Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis issued the following statement on the November 2012 Employment Situation report released today:

"Our nation added 146,000 nonfarm payroll jobs in November, while the unemployment rate fell to 7.7 percent, its lowest level since December 2008.

"November's jobs report means we've now seen 33 straight months of private sector job growth totaling nearly 5.6 million jobs. This year, we've created an average of 154,000 private sector jobs a month.

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor today published in the Federal Register its finalized tribal consultation policy, which establishes a formal process through which the department will engage in consultation with federally recognized tribes on actions or policies that will have a significant impact on tribal nations. This policy requires that the department's government-to-government consultation with the federally recognized tribes involve appropriate tribal and department officials.