From bob.estabrook at state.or.us Mon Dec 17 10:05:07 2012 From: bob.estabrook at state.or.us (Estabrook Bob) Date: Mon, 17 Dec 2012 18:05:07 +0000 Subject: NEWS RELEASE: Labor Commissioner Appoints New Deputy, Division Administrator Message-ID: <050F2D1BA8177F4B927C6F3AC041EF8215190720@D5DAG1A.D5.USA.NET> [cid:image001.png at 01CDDC3D.DCC6E330] Commissioner Brad Avakian Bureau of Labor & Industries Press Release For Immediate Distribution December 17, 2012 CONTACT: Bob Estabrook, 503-709-0730 Labor Commissioner Appoints New Deputy, Division Administrator Former Deputy Labor and Industries Commissioner has retired PORTLAND - Oregon Labor and Industries Commissioner Brad Avakian, chief of the state's Bureau of Labor and Industries, has elevated two long-time employees of the Wage and Hour Division to higher posts in the agency. The recent retirement of the agency's Deputy Commissioner, Doug McKean, gave Avakian the opportunity to name a new Deputy, now-former Wage and Hour Division (WHD) Administrator Christie Hammond, and to promote WHD Compliance Manager Gerhard Taeubel to the Administrator position. "Doug has been an exemplary public servant for many years, and has certainly earned the happy retirement that I and all the staff at BOLI wish for him," said Avakian. "While the loss of Doug's expertise will be difficult for the agency, we are very fortunate to have someone as talented as Christie Hammond, who has spent her career working up through the ranks here at BOLI, willing to step up and help lead the agency." Doug McKean served more than 20 years at BOLI, including as a WHD Compliance Specialist, Case Presenter, Administrative Law Judge and Deputy Commissioner. Prior to his appointment as Deputy in 2007, McKean served as an attorney in the Office of Legislative Counsel, drafting much of the legislation BOLI is charged with enforcing. Hammond is a 36-year veteran of the agency, beginning as a clerical specialist with the Apprenticeship and Training Division and performing with distinction at every level of the WHD. As Administrator of the WHD, Hammond has been the state's top enforcement official for ensuring that fair wages are paid to the working Oregonians who have earned them. "Ensuring equal pay for equal work is a reality in Oregon, and expanding access to career and technical education in public schools that leads to living wage jobs-I'm thrilled to be a part of these major policy efforts," Hammond said. "BOLI's role in protecting the workplace rights and civil rights of all Oregonians is critical to the overall health of our economy, and becoming more important all the time." Both Hammond and Taeubel are working in their new roles now. Visit www.oregon.gov/BOLI for more information about all of BOLI's work to protect workers' rights and support local employers in Oregon. ###### The mission of the Bureau of Labor and Industries is to protect employment rights, advance employment opportunities, and protect access to housing and public accommodations free from discrimination. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: image001.png Type: image/png Size: 11416 bytes Desc: image001.png URL: -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: 12.17.12_BOLI_Release_-_New_Deputy.pdf Type: application/pdf Size: 28850 bytes Desc: 12.17.12_BOLI_Release_-_New_Deputy.pdf URL: From bob.estabrook at state.or.us Thu Dec 27 14:16:08 2012 From: bob.estabrook at state.or.us (Estabrook Bob) Date: Thu, 27 Dec 2012 22:16:08 +0000 Subject: NEWS RELEASE: BOLI's New Year's Reminders to Oregon Employers Message-ID: <050F2D1BA8177F4B927C6F3AC041EF8215194C53@D5DAG1A.D5.USA.NET> [cid:image003.png at 01CDE43C.77D5BF80] Commissioner Brad Avakian Bureau of Labor & Industries Press Release For Immediate Distribution December 27, 2012 CONTACT: Bob Estabrook, 503-709-0730 New Year's Reminders to Oregon Employers: New Minimum Wage, and Don't Get Scammed on Required Posters PORTLAND - Oregon Labor and Industries Commissioner Brad Avakian and the state's Bureau of Labor and Industries are stressing to all employers operating in Oregon that New Year's is the perfect time to ensure compliance with all minimum wage and mandatory posting requirements. As BOLI announced in September, Oregon's minimum wage for 2013 is $8.95 per hour. "BOLI is a strong supporter of Oregon's business community," said Avakian. "We provide these reminders, and the ongoing services of our Technical Assistance for Employers Program throughout the year, because we want Oregon employers to be successful and we know that the best situation for workers as well as business people is to have the law followed correctly in the first place." BOLI is also re-reminding Oregon employers to be wary of notices they receive from for-profit companies selling "required" posters. Such solicitations often appear to come from a government office and stress the penalties for failing to post required information while avoiding mention that all posters are available from the enforcement agencies at no cost. BOLI keeps a list of required postings on its website, offering print-on-demand for the posters as well as a low-cost option for composite posters "We consistently get a lot of questions about which posters are required for which employers," said Jennifer Germundson, Manager of the Technical Assistance for Employers Program. "We offer the 6-in-one and 8-in-one posters for just $10 plus shipping to make sure that every Oregon employer can easily and confidently post the required information and get back to running their business." Visit www.oregon.gov/BOLI for more information about all of BOLI's work to protect workers' rights and support local employers in Oregon. ###### The mission of the Bureau of Labor and Industries is to protect employment rights, advance employment opportunities, and protect access to housing and public accommodations free from discrimination. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... 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