The Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) has approved the nomination of Jane Oates to serve as the assistant secretary of the Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration (ETA). The ETA is the DOL’s sub-agency tasked with administering federal government job training and worker dislocation programs, federal grants to states for public employment service programs, and unemployment insurance benefits. Currently, Oates is the executive director of the New Jersey Commission on Higher Education and senior policy advisor to Governor Jon S. Corzine. Prior to this position, Oates served as the senior policy advisor on higher education, national service, adult literacy, education research and workforce issues to Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) on the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions.
In other agency news, President Obama recently announced his intent to nominate Harry Hoglander to serve on the National Medication Board (NMB) for a third term. The three-member NMB is the agency charged with overseeing collective bargaining and representation under the Railway Labor Act (RLA), which provides employees in the aviation and railroad industries the right to organize and bargain collectively. Hoglander has been a member of the NMB since August 6, 2002, and has twice served as its chairman. A former commercial airline and U.S. Air Force pilot, Hoglander also served as the executive vice-president of the Airline Pilots Association. In addition, Hoglander is an attorney who worked as a legislative specialist for Rep. John Tierney (D-Mass.) for matters concerning transportation, labor, defense and veterans affairs.
This entry has been revised to reflect the following correction:
Correction: June 18, 2009
The Washington D.C. Employment Law Update blog entry posted June 12 provided incorrect information regarding the nomination of Jane Oates to serve as the assistant secretary of the Department of Labor's Employment and Training Administration (ETA). Oates's nomination has been approved by the Senate HELP Committee; the Senate has not yet confirmed her nomination.
