BEIJING
- U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao
announced the signing of four letters of
understanding to broaden cooperation between
the United States of America and China in
the areas of labor, employment and workplace
safety.
Officials from the Ministry of Labor and
Social Security of the People's Republic
of China (MOLSS) and the State Administration
of Work Safety (SAWS) of the People's Republic
of China (PRC) participated in the signing
ceremony. Secretary Chao's visit and the
four agreements represent the U.S. Department
of Labor's (DOL) most comprehensive engagement
with China on labor issues ever.
 Observing
the signing ceremonies with Secretary Chao
today were Minister Zheng Silin, Minister
of Labor and Social Security, People's Republic
of China and Administrator Wang Xianzheng,
State Administration of Work Safety, People's
Republic of China.
"The U.S. Labor Department is committed
to working with its Chinese counterparts
to share information and practices that
will help ensure that the development of
labor standards in China keep pace with
China's rapid economic development,"
said Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao.
"These agreements are the next step
in the department's ongoing engagement with
China and include collaboration on several
important labor issues including mine safety,
workplace safety, wages and pensions."
Victoria A. Lipnic, Assistant Secretary
for Employment Standards at U.S. DOL signed
a letter of understanding with Liu Xu, Director
General of Department of International Cooperation,
Ministry of Labor and Social Security, for
the PRC. Under the agreement the agencies
will broaden their cooperation in the areas
of wage and hour regulations and enforcement,
public awareness of wage and hour laws and
the effective management and analysis of
wage and hour enforcement data.
John L. Henshaw, Assistant Secretary for
the Occupational Safety and Health Administration
at U.S. DOL signed a letter of understanding
with Lin Yisheng, Deputy Director General
Department of Foreign Affairs, State Administration
of Work Safety, for the PRC. Under the agreement
the agencies will broaden their cooperation
in the areas of occupational safety and
health, the handling and distribution of
hazardous chemicals; emergency response
procedures in workplace accidents; private
insurance programs that help promote workplace
safety and health; and the effective collection
and analysis of occupational safety and
health data.
David D. Lauriski, Assistant Secretary
for Mine Safety and Health at U.S. DOL,
signed a letter of understanding with Lin
Yisheng, Deputy Director General, Department
of Foreign Affairs, State Administration
of Work Safety for the PRC. Under the agreement
the agencies will broaden their cooperation
in the areas of accident emergency response,
the role of private insurance in the promotion
of mine safety and health; and the effective
collection and analysis of mine safety and
health data.
 Ann
L. Combs, Assistant Secretary of the Employee
Benefits Administration at U.S. DOL, signed
a letter of understanding with Liu Xu, Director
General of Department of International Cooperation,
Minister of Labor and Social Security for
the People's Republic of China. Under the
agreement the agencies will broaden their
cooperation in the regulation, administration
and oversight of pension programs.
These four agreements broaden the ongoing
cooperation between the U.S. Department
of Labor and its counterparts in the People's
Republic of China. Under these agreements,
the agencies reaffirmed their common objectives
to ensure economic growth, raise living
standards and support greater shared prosperity,
foster safe work environments and protect
workers rights in accordance with relevant
international labor principles while fully
respecting the national laws of both the
United States and China.
The department's earlier cooperative agreements
with China include a $4.1 million grant
to support the rule of law and a $2.3 million
mine safety and health project. |
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