Editing Alexis Herman (section)

===Secretary of Labor===
In 1996, President Clinton announced his intention to nominate Herman as [[United States Secretary of Labor|Secretary of Labor]] to replace outgoing Secretary [[Robert Reich]].<ref name="Silverstein, Stuart, A Power Behind" /><ref name="Merida, Kevin, After Pitched Battle" /> [[trade union|Labor union]]s publicly supported the nomination, although they had mostly supported other potential nominees such as [[Harris Wofford]], [[Esteban Edward Torres]], and [[Alan Wheat]].<ref name="Merida, Kevin, After Pitched Battle" /> Herman's [[U.S. Senate]] confirmation was delayed twice. The first resulted from questions regarding her role in organizing White House coffees Clinton used as fundraisers. The second was because Senate Republicans refused to allow a vote on her nomination, as part of their opposition to a proposed [[executive order]] related to federal construction projects, which Clinton eventually abandoned.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1997/05/10/herman-sworn-in-as-labor-secretary/3bfd931d-4b9e-4435-b416-033bd8b10568/|title=Herman Sworn in as Labor Secretary|date=May 10, 1997|newspaper=Washington Post|access-date=December 23, 2017|language=en-US|issn=0190-8286}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1997-04-30-mn-53967-story.html|title=Labor Secretary-Designate Caught in Power Struggle|last=Dewar|first=Helen|date=April 30, 1997|work=Los Angeles Times|access-date=January 27, 2018|language=en-US|issn=0458-3035}}</ref> With the delays over, the [[United States Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions|Senate Labor Committee]] held its hearing on her nomination on March 18, 1997.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/1997/03/19/labor-nominee-breezes-through-hearing/|title=Labor Nominee Breezes Through Hearing|last=Doring|first=Mike|date=March 19, 1997|work=tribunedigital-chicagotribune|access-date=January 27, 2018|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.c-span.org/video/?79766-1/secretary-labor-confirmation-hearing|title=Secretary Labor Confirmation Hearing, Mar 18 1997|date=March 18, 1997|website=C-SPAN.org|language=en-US|access-date=January 27, 2018}}</ref> Then on April 30, 1997, the Senate voted to confirm by a vote of 85–13.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/govt/admin/stories/herman050197.htm|title=Washingtonpost.com: Herman Confirmed for Cabinet After Concession by President|last1=Harris|first1=John F.|last2=Swoboda|first2=Frank|date=May 1, 1997|website=www.washingtonpost.com|access-date=December 24, 2017}}</ref> Herman was sworn in on May 9, 1997.<ref name="ClintonWhitehouse" /> She became the [[List of Black-American United States Cabinet Secretaries|first Black-American]], and the [[List of female United States Cabinet Secretaries|fifth woman]], to serve in the position.<ref name="ClintonWhitehouse" /><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://clintonwhitehouse4.archives.gov/textonly/WH/EOP/First_Lady/html/teens/herman.html|title=Alexis M. Herman|website=clintonwhitehouse4.archives.gov|access-date=December 23, 2017}}</ref>

As Secretary of Labor, Herman oversaw the [[U.S. Department of Labor]], which at the time employed 17,000 people and operated on a $39-billion annual budget.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9OoGywhnYIkC&q=alexis+herman+labor+department+budget+%2439+billion&pg=PA124|title=Racial Justice in America: A Reference Handbook|last=Mustard|first=David B.|date=2003|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=9781576072141|pages=124|language=en}}</ref> The Department of Labor is tasked with enforcing a variety of workplace laws and regulations, including safety issues and anti-discrimination.<ref name="Taylor, T. Shawn, Secretary of Labor">{{Cite news|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/2001/01/28/secretary-of-labor-2/|title=Secretary Of Labor|last=Taylor|first=T. Shawn|date=January 28, 2001|work=tribunedigital-chicagotribune|access-date=January 21, 2018|language=en}}</ref> During Herman's tenure, American unemployment was at its lowest level in decades.<ref name="Taylor, T. Shawn, Secretary of Labor" />
[[File:Aherman1.jpg|thumb|upright|Herman's official U.S. Department of Labor portrait]]
Herman earned praise from her peers for her handling of the [[United Parcel Service strike of 1997|1997 United Parcel Service (UPS) workers strike]], the largest strike in the United States in two decades.<ref name="ClintonWhitehouse">{{Cite web|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/govt/admin/herman.htm|title=Washingtonpost.com: Politics -- The Administration, Alexis M. Herman|date=1998|website=www.washingtonpost.com|access-date=December 24, 2017}}</ref><ref name="Merida, Kevin, For Herman" /><ref name="Taylor, T. Shawn, Secretary of Labor" /> After the strike began in August, Herman met privately with the [[Teamsters]]' president [[Ron Carey (labor leader)|Ron Carey]] and the UPS chairman to frame the issues. She was an instrumental mediator in the talks,<!--<ref name="Merida, Kevin, For Herman" />--> and the strike was settled after 15 days.<ref name="Merida, Kevin, For Herman" /> Herman's role in resolving the strike raised her public profile as she began to pursue her agenda as Secretary.<ref name="Thurman, Skip" />

As secretary, Herman supported the 1996 and 1997 raises to the [[Minimum wage in the United States|minimum wage]], increasing it by $0.90 to $5.15 per hour by September 1997.<ref>{{Cite magazine|url=http://content.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,9273,00.html|title=Lowest-Rate Workers Get Labor Day Raise|last=Pellegrini|first=Frank|date=September 1, 1997|magazine=Time|access-date=January 20, 2018|language=en-US|issn=0040-781X}}</ref><ref name="Minimum wage jumps">{{Cite web|url=http://www.cnn.com/US/9709/01/minimum.wage/|title=Minimum wage jumps to $5.15|date=September 1, 1997|website=www.cnn.com|access-date=January 20, 2018}}</ref> Herman argued the wage hike increased the buying power of workers.<ref name="Minimum wage jumps" /> She later opposed a 1999 Republican-supported plan to raise the minimum wage over three years, instead supporting a two-year time-table for an increase.<ref name="2 in Cabinet Push" /> Herman also opposed the legislation as it included tax cuts without offsets.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/senate-passes-gop-wage-hike/|title=Senate Passes GOP Wage Hike|date=November 9, 1999|work=cbs.com|access-date=January 20, 2018|language=en}}</ref><ref name="2 in Cabinet Push">{{Cite news|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1999-nov-02-mn-28960-story.html|title=2 in Cabinet Push Minimum Wage Bill Veto|last=Associated Press|date=November 2, 1999|work=Los Angeles Times|access-date=January 20, 2018|language=en-US|issn=0458-3035}}</ref>

Among Herman's responsibilities as secretary was the enforcement of [[Child labour law|child labor laws]].<ref name="Taylor, T. Shawn, Secretary of Labor" /> During her tenure, the Department of Labor fined toy store chain [[Toys "R" Us]] $200,000 for violating laws restricting the type of work that may be done, and the number of hours that may be worked by underage employees.<ref name="Associated Press, Toys R Us">{{Cite news|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1999-dec-02-fi-39629-story.html|title=Toys R Us Slapped With $200,000 Fine for Hundreds of Child Labor Violations|last=Associated Press|date=December 2, 1999|work=Los Angeles Times|access-date=January 22, 2018|language=en-US|issn=0458-3035}}</ref> It found more than 300 teenage employees were working more and later hours than permitted, and Toys "R" Us agreed to stop the practices.<ref name="Associated Press, Toys R Us" />

Herman supported the United States' participation in the [[International Labour Organization|International Labor Organization's]] Child Labor Convention, a treaty designed to protect children under 18 years old from slavery, trafficking, bondage, and other abuses.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/us-signs-child-labor-treaty/|title=U.S. Signs Child Labor Treaty|date=December 2, 1999|work=CBSNews.com|access-date=January 22, 2018|language=en}}</ref> She also defended the United States' support of a provision to allow for voluntary military service of those under 18 years old, a practice allowed in the United States, Great Britain, Germany, and the Netherlands.<ref name="Another Cabinet Member Cleared" /> Opponents, including other nations, [[trade union]]s, and [[Amnesty International]] urged tougher provisions; however, Herman contended the focus of the treaty should be on forced labor, not voluntary military service.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1999/06/18/world/un-agency-adopts-treaty-on-child-labor.html|title=U.N. Agency Adopts Treaty on Child Labor|last=Olson|first=Elizabeth|date=June 18, 1999|work=The New York Times|access-date=January 22, 2018|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}}</ref>

[[United States Attorney General|Attorney General]] [[Janet Reno]] appointed [[United States Department of Justice Office of Special Counsel|Independent Counsel]] Ralph I. Lancaster Jr., in May 1998, to investigate Herman after businessman Laurent J. Yene alleged she accepted [[Kickback (bribery)|kickbacks]] while working at the White House.<ref name="Another Cabinet Member Cleared">{{Cite news|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/2000/04/08/another-cabinet-member-cleared/|title=Another Cabinet Member Cleared|date=April 8, 2000|work=tribunedigital-chicagotribune|access-date=January 21, 2018|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/1999/09/08/clinton-questioned-about-herman/|title=Clinton Questioned About Herman|date=September 8, 1999|work=tribunedigital-chicagotribune|access-date=January 21, 2018|language=en}}</ref><ref name="Jackson, Robert L., Labor Secretary Cleared">{{Cite news|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2000-apr-06-mn-16574-story.html|title=Labor Secretary Cleared After Bribery Probe|last=Jackson|first=Robert L.|date=April 6, 2000|work=Los Angeles Times|access-date=January 22, 2018|language=en-US|issn=0458-3035}}</ref> Reno was skeptical of Yene's allegations following a preliminary [[FBI]] investigation, but she believed the law obligated her to appoint independent counsel where she could not affirm the claims were without merit.<ref name="Jackson, Robert L., Labor Secretary Cleared" /> Following a twenty-three month investigation, Independent Counsel Lancaster concluded that Herman had broken no laws and cleared her of all wrongdoing.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2000/04/06/us/labor-secretary-is-cleared-in-inquiry-on-kickbacks.html|title=Labor Secretary Is Cleared in Inquiry on Kickbacks|last=Lewis|first=Neil A.|date=April 6, 2000|work=The New York Times|access-date=December 27, 2017|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref name="Another Cabinet Member Cleared" /> She was the fifth Clinton cabinet officer to be investigated by independent counsel, and the fourth cleared of all wrongdoing.<ref name="Another Cabinet Member Cleared" /><ref name="Jackson, Robert L., Labor Secretary Cleared" /> The Independent Counsel investigations of the cabinet members cost $95 million and did not uncover any felonies, leading Congress to allow the [[Independent Counsel Act]] to expire in June 1999 without re-authorization.<ref name="Jackson, Robert L., Labor Secretary Cleared" />

Herman was active in [[Al Gore|Al Gore's]] 2000 campaign for president.<ref name="Broder, John M, Counting the Vote">{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2000/11/23/us/counting-vote-vice-president-gore-has-decided-start-engines-his-transition.html|title=Counting the Vote: The Vice President; Gore Has Decided to Start Engines of His Transition|last1=Seelye|first1=Katharine Q.|date=November 23, 2000|work=The New York Times|access-date=December 30, 2017|last2=Broder|first2=John M.|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> During the [[Florida election recount]], Herman was part of the team planning a transition to a Gore Administration. ''[[ABC News (United States)|ABC News]]'' and ''[[The New York Times]]'' considered her a likely candidate to remain in Gore's White House if he won.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/story?id=122333&page=1|title=Bush Meets Congressional Leaders|last=ABC News|date=December 3, 2000|website=ABC News|access-date=December 30, 2017}}</ref><ref name="Broder, John M, Counting the Vote" /> [[Elaine Chao]] replaced her as Secretary of Labor in the [[George W. Bush]] administration.<ref name="Taylor, T. Shawn, Secretary of Labor" />