Mark McDermott named regional representative of US Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis

WASHINGTON – Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis today announced the appointment of Mark McDermott as her representative in Region 10 of the U.S. Department of Labor. The region includes the states of Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota and Alaska. McDermott will be based in Seattle, Wash.

"I'm delighted to welcome Mark to the Labor Department team," said Secretary Solis. "He has a vast and impressive career in public service at the local and state levels, knows the region well, and has an unparalleled record of achievement on behalf of working families."

Within the U.S. Department of Labor, secretary's representatives, also known as "sec reps," are responsible for managing the department's regional activities on behalf of the secretary. They coordinate federal efforts on the regional, state and local levels, and serve as liaisons to state and local government officials and community stakeholders.

McDermott has a long career in local and state government. Before joining the Department of Labor, he was the personnel director for the city of Seattle. Previously, he served on the staff of the Commerce and Labor Committee in the state senate, as assistant director of the Department of Labor and Industries, as chief deputy insurance commissioner and as director of income assistance for the Department of Social and Health Services, all in the state of Washington. He also served as a senior policy advisor for labor relations for the mayor of the city of Seattle and as a strategic policy advisor for employment, training and poverty issues in the Mayor's Office of Economic Development for the city of Seattle.

McDermott is a former member of the Machinists Union and the American, Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Union. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree, cum laude, from Knox College in Illinois and a Master of Public Administration degree from the University of Washington.

The Department of Labor fosters and promotes the welfare of the job seekers, wage earners and retirees of the United States by improving their working conditions, advancing their opportunities for profitable employment, protecting their retirement and health care benefits, helping employers find workers, strengthening free collective bargaining, and tracking changes in employment, prices and other national economic measurements. In carrying out this mission, the department administers a variety of federal labor laws including those that guarantee workers' rights to safe and healthful working conditions; a minimum hourly wage and overtime pay; freedom from employment discrimination; unemployment insurance; and other income support.