Labor & Employment Law

Shailor Named to State Department Post

By James Parks

Barbara Shailor

Barbara Shailor, former international affairs director of the AFL-CIO, has been named U.S. State Department’s new special representative for international labor affairs.

Shailor will lead State’s efforts to promote worker rights, conduct liaison with the global labor movement and focus on strengthening the labor officer operations in U.S. embassies around the world.

Shailor led the AFL-CIO International Department for nearly 15 years, serving as senior adviser to AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka and AFL-CIO President Emeritus John Sweeney on foreign and international policy issues. Prior to joining the AFL-CIO staff, Shailor served as international affairs director for the Machinists (IAM).

A State Department announcement says Shailor is

internationally recognized for her lifelong work to secure economic, social, and political rights for workers in the U.S. and throughout the world.

The Bush administration did not fill the special representative position, and the job has been vacant since 2002. Testifying before a House Foreign Affairs subcommittee in March 2010, Michael Posner, assistant secretary of state for democracy, human rights and labor, said the special representative would “greatly enhance” the Obama administration’s work to promote labor diplomacy:

This individual will take the lead for the department in promoting strong labor diplomacy and ensuring a high-level focus on labor rights and employment issues. This position…will also serve to strengthen the traditional ties of my bureau to labor stakeholders, including the global labor movement, as key contributors and partners in labor diplomacy.

On June 7, Cathy Feingold will take over as director of international affairs for the AFL-CIO, succeeding Shailor.

Full post as published by AFL-CIO NOW BLOG on June 03, 2010 (boomark / email).