On Monday morning, March 18, President Obama announced his pick for Secretary of Labor. Thomas Perez, 51, will be the next to assume the role, succeeding Hilda Solis.
During the president's address, Obama thanked Solis for all her hard work and commemorated her entire team in the Department of Labor. He cited the department's incredible achievements in protecting the values and families of workers by providing them with improving working conditions.
Perez, previously an assistant attorney general in the Justice Department and the son of immigrants from the Dominican Republic, is expected to use his determination and hard work in his new role as Secretary of Labor. He paid his way through college by working as a garbage man and graduated with a degree from Harvard Law School. He worked as the secretary of Maryland's Department of Labor before his previous job in the Justice Department, enforcing state consumer rights, workplace safety and wage and hour laws.
With Perez as Secretary of Labor, Obama hopes his goal of overhauling immigration laws and increasing the minimum wage will be realized. The senate must still approve Perez's nomination, but there's little doubt that Obama's decision will stick.
The nomination marks a major victory for Latinos in the U.S., as politicians look to include more Latino voices in government. With the new Secretary of Labor, primary economic and labor force issues will be addressed.
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