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Change in Government: Barack Obama's Letters to AFGE President John Gage

By Bob Gilson

Thursday, November 13, 2008

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On October 20, just weeks before the election, Sen. Barack Obama sent six letters to John Gage. These letters address concerns, apparently raised by Mr. Gage with then Candidate Obama. We have not seen Mr. Gage's letters, but Mr. Obama's stand alone. They address issues in six agencies: the Dept. of Veterans Affairs, Environmental Protection Agency, Housing and Urban Development, Social Security Administration, Transportation Security Administration and the Labor Department.

In this article we'll look at the letters to DOL, EPA and HUD saving SSA, TSA and VA for part 2 of this article.

Department of Labor

In this letter, Senator Obama makes five key points:

He promises a Labor Secretary, who -

• fully supports the mission of the Department
• will protect working Americans and their families.
• fight to protect overtime rights for millions of Americans
• enforce wage and hour laws
• ensure that OSHA enforces workplace safety laws.

1. He says his Labor Secretary will support DoL civil servants as they work to enforce our labor laws.
2. He says that the Administrator of Mine Safety and Health will be an advocate for miners' safety and health, not for the mining companies' bottom lines. Our mine safety program will have the staffing and the enforcement tools needed to get the job done.
3. He states that "it's time we stopped talking about family values and start pursuing policies that truly value families, such as paid family leave, flexible work schedules, and telework,…"
4. With regard to the last bullet, he says the federal government will lead by example.
   
   http://www.fedsmith.com/article/1765/