SECRETARY’S MESSAGE
ELAINE L.
CHAO, SECRETARY OF LABOR
As Americans joined together during 2002 to rebuild from
tragedy and conquer terrorism in the aftermath of September 11, 2001, the
Nation’s economy and our confidence in its financial institutions faced
new tests. With the collapse of noted corporate giants and the caution of
investors in the wake of these scandals, unemployment rose to 6 percent by
December 2002. Heading into the New Year, however, there is cause for optimism.
Inflation is low, home and auto sales remain strong, interest rates are at the
lowest levels in decades, and we have had four straight quarters of positive
economic growth. The productivity gains that have continued through our
economic slowdown confirm that our Nation’s most important resource —
American workers and the spirit they embody — is stronger than ever.
No event during the past year symbolized the indomitable spirit of the
American worker more than the rescue of nine heroic miners trapped by flooding
waters in a Pennsylvania coal mine. I am proud of the leading role our tireless
team from the Department of Labor (DOL) played, in partnership with many other
organizations, in returning the mine workers safely to their families. And I
salute the courage of the miners who so inspired the Nation last summer.
At this time last year, I challenged all of my colleagues at DOL with
the observation that “the new century requires new partnerships and a
different way of thinking.” As our FY 2002 Annual Report illustrates, the
response to that call has been overwhelming. We have reached out to all sectors
— government, business, academia, labor, and non-profit — to improve
the lives of today’s workers and to plan ahead to meet the challenges they
will face in the new Century. Under the leadership of the Department’s
Office of the 21st Century Workforce, for example, we have brought together
economic and social policy leaders to examine the issues that will challenge
our economy and workforce in the coming decades, including the impact of
productivity improvements, the role of technology, and challenges for female
entrepreneurs, and to develop solutions to meet these challenges. Through the
President’s Council on the 21st Century Workforce and its three related
secretarial committees, we have gathered a distinguished cross-section of
business, labor, civic, and academic leaders to focus on these issues.
New partnerships have also enriched the Department’s job training
and employment services in 2002. Faith-based and community organizations, with
their numerous volunteers, bring new energy and individualized assistance to
participants in our training programs. Employers are also partnering with the
Department and the States in a variety of non-traditional arrangements to meet
specific skill needs or to fill the skills gap created by retiring workers.
To protect the American worker, we are significantly increasing the
assistance and outreach — from expanded Web site information to formal
partnerships — that DOL offers to employers seeking to comply with our
labor and employment laws. Working with employers who share our goals, we can
prevent the loss of life, health, or economic security before it occurs —
something that cannot be achieved with only fines and penalties. Our
willingness to partner with responsible employers and labor organizations is
matched by our commitment to exercise the full measure of the Department’s
enforcement authorities against employers who place America’s workers,
retirees, or their families at physical or financial risk.
Achieving the Department’s Goals
Together with our
partners, we made significant progress in FY 2002 toward reaching the
Department’s three strategic goals — A Prepared Workforce, A
Secure Workforce, and Quality Workplaces.
Here are a few highlights:
Despite the economic challenges, the Department’s employment and
training programs achieved a majority of their goals. For example, the Job
Corps program, serving some of the Nation’s most disadvantaged youth,
successfully placed 90 percent of its graduates into jobs with average hourly
entry wages of $7.96. This exceeds its goal of an 85 percent placement rate in
jobs paying an average hourly wage of $7.25.
The Office of Disability Employment Policy initiated 38 demonstration
programs to test innovative approaches for assisting adults and youth with
severe disabilities in realizing their dreams of fulfilling careers and
economic self-sufficiency. As the Office shares the most effective approaches
with partners nationwide, we look forward to the day when the employment rate
for persons with severe disabilities nears the employment rate for all
Americans. 
President George W. Bush looks on as Secretary Elaine L. Chao addresses
attendees at the March, 2002 conference on Women Entrepreneurship in the 21st
Century.
As news of financial wrong-doing at major U.S. corporations unfolded,
we have moved aggressively to protect the retirement security of the 150
million American workers and retirees who participate in pension plans. In FY
2002, the Department’s investigative efforts restored a record
approximately $690 million in assets to pension plans that might otherwise have
been lost.
Voluntary, cooperative relationships between the Department and
employers convincingly demonstrated their value in improving safety and health
for the American worker. Worksites active in two of the Occupational Safety and
Health Administration’s cooperative programs in FY 2001 had an estimated
47 percent decline in Lost Injury and Illness rates compared to their baseline
rates. This greatly exceeds our target of a 15 percent reduction. In view of
this success, we will expand these programs to many more employers and workers
in the coming year.
In FY 2002, DOL continued its record of responsible stewardship, as
reflected by the sixth consecutive “unqualified” or “clean”
audit opinion on the Department’s financial statements.
Implementing the President’s Agenda
The Department is
fully committed to the President’s vision of a results-driven Government
with greater accountability to its citizens. We are pleased to report that the
Department achieved a higher percentage of our performance goals in FY 2002
than in the previous year. Many challenges, however, remain to fully realize
the promise of the Government Performance and Results Act. We look forward to
sharpening our focus on core outcomes and increasing our proficiency in
performance-based management.
The performance and financial data presented in this report comports
with guidance from the Office of Management and Budget with respect to
completeness and reliability because the Department’s managers routinely
use the performance information and financial data summarized in this report to
improve the quality of DOL services and to formally account for the
accomplishments of their programs. The only exception we note is the
information on the results of the Public Labor Exchange. Delays in completing a
new system prevented the State Workforce Agencies from collecting data on the
numbers of job seekers they assisted who remained employed six months after
securing a job. The results achieved for all other FY 2002 goals are discussed
in this report or will be included in a future annual report. This report
outlines our continuing effort to strengthen the quality and timeliness of the
Department’s performance information to increase its value to both DOL
managers and constituents and to address data quality issues identified by the
Office of Inspector General and General Accounting Office.
Looking to the Future
In the year ahead, we will take two
crucial steps to better position the Department to help America’s workers
and employers face the challenges of the 21st Century. First, we will work with
the Congress to reauthorize the Workforce Investment Act and, through this
process, to revitalize our job training and employment programs. Our primary
objective is to more closely link the One-Stop Career Centers with employers.
We want to equip participants in our training programs with real skills so they
can succeed in the 21st Century labor market. Second, we will complete our
Strategic Plan for FYs 2003 through 2008, and add a new strategic goal: A
Competitive Workforce. This goal will lay the foundation for new initiatives in
every DOL program to help ensure that America’s workers and employers
thrive in the new economy of the 21st Century. It will also help us adapt our
practices to support promising workplace innovations, and to ensure that all
Americans have the opportunity to achieve rewarding careers and enjoy a
financially secure retirement. 
Elaine L. Chao
Secretary of Labor
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