Some Thoughts/Speculation on Labor and Employment Appointments in the Obama Administration

So what do you get when you put together the election of a Democratic President and the fact that much of the labor and employment law professoriate is, shall we say, on the progressive side of things? 

Answer: many said academics wandering what role, if any, they will be playing in the new Obama administration.  From the lowest of assistants to the assistant Deputy of something to the head of some important agency, the number of positions open in places like the Department of Labor, the NLRB, the EEOC, etc. is staggering.

What follows then is some combination of sheer speculation and educated guesses.  Although I served on two of President-elect Obama's policy committees (labor and government reform), the latter as the Midwest Chair, I am completely outside of this process and do not serve on any of the transition teams in these areas.

In any event, here are my predictions/guesses (with a little help from my friends), and of course only a part of these appointments in any case will be from the academic world.  Feel free to put forward your suggestions/predictions in the comments that follow.  Who knows maybe somebody with some influence will be reading this post!

Secretary of Labor:  Robert Reich (Dick Gephardt and David Bonior have also been mentioned)

Deputy Secretary of Labor: Ed Montgomery (also national chair of Obama's Labor Policy Committee)

Solicitor of Labor: Seth Harris, Kathy Stone

Deputy Solicitor of Labor: Sam Bagenstos, Eric Schnapper, Marion Crain

NLRB Members:  Dennis Walsh, Anne Marie Lofaso, Jeff Hirsch, Sam Estreicher, Joan Flynn, Sharon Block, Jim Brudney

NLRB General Counsel:  Michael Gottesman, Cindy Estlund, Craig Becker

Office of Labor-Management Standards: Ken Dau-Schmidt, Laura Cooper

EEOC Commissioners: Wendy Williams, Chai Feldblum, Charlie Sullivan, Mike Zimmer, Roberto Corrada

Women's Bureau: Nancy Levit, Susan Carle, Angela-Onwuachi-Willig

OSHA: Jordan Barab

Office of Disability Employment Policy: Paul Miller, Michael Waterstone, Michael Stein, Mark Weber

FMCS:  Rick Bales, Marty Malin

Employment Standards Administration:  David Weil, Tom Kochan

Wage and Hour Division:  Catherine Fiske, Matt Bodie, Steve Befort, Peggie Smith

MSPB: Marty Malin, Joe Slater, Helen Norton

Office of Special Counsel:  Richard Moberly

EBSA: Colleen Medill, Ed Zelinsky, Jon Forman

PBGC: Albert Feuer, Jim Wooten

OFCCP:  Melissa Hart

Bureau of International Labor Affairs: Lance Compa, Matt Finkin, Hillary Josephs

One last thought: it will be interesting to see if Obama keeps the Center for Faith-Based and Community Initiatives.

Have at it everyone.

PS