The Plain Writing Act of 2010 requires federal agencies to write "clear Government communication that the public can understand and use."

The U.S. Department of Labor is committed to complying with the law. Our plain writing webpage includes an overview of the law, a summary of the Department's goals, and plain language contact information.

This report describes the Department's plain language activities and accomplishments in Fiscal Year (FY) 2020.

Agency Activities and Accomplishments

  • In September 2019, the Department's Office of Compliance Initiatives (OCI) started a review of the Department's enforcement agencies' compliance assistance materials and tools to determine whether they are current, easily accessible, and understandable. As part of the review, OCI evaluated the enforcement agencies' plain language efforts and adherence to plain language principles. Overall, the review found that agencies follow plain language principles to organize content and present information.
  • The Department formed a plain language working group in March 2020 to review agency material and develop resources. The working group met regularly to discuss plain language efforts, create resources, review material, and host internal and external speakers. The working group's subject matter experts support agencies in developing compliance assistance material.
  • The Department launched the first intranet page with information and resources on plain language for all staff.
  • The Department developed a one-page plain language quick reference guide and made it available to all staff through its new plain language intranet page. The reference guide is easy to use and provides plain language tips and resources at a glance.
  • The Department used an internal subject matter expert to provide plain language training to one of its agencies in June 2020. The training covered all of the main plain language principles, displayed examples, and provided resources.
  • The Department requires that all new employees take online plain language training within 90 days of starting. In FY 2020, 1,792 new employees nationwide took the training and received a completion certificate.
  • The Department revamped the online plain language training it previously offered to only new employees. The training is currently in the final approval stages with the LearningLink team. The goal for FY 2021 is that the training will become mandatory for all employees annually.
  • The Department requested to add a plain language component to the annual Secretary's Honor Award for Innovation. This would allow managers and supervisors to nominate employees and teams for plain language excellence. The Department anticipates that the award category will be approved for FY 2021 and lead to increased use of plain language principles and enthusiastic participation in training and other initiatives.

Evaluation

Each year, the Center for Plain Language evaluates federal agencies for compliance with the Plain Writing Act.

In 2020, the Center for Plain Language evaluated federal agencies on the following areas:

  • An urgent help page, selected from top .gov pages in Google search results for urgent queries, previously reviewed in FY 2019.
  • The Department's main coronavirus page.

The evaluation scores include two categories. We received an A- in organizational compliance, which consists of staffing, training, and annual reporting required by law. We received a B- in writing quality, focusing on how easy it is for the public to find, understand, and use the information it needs.