Labor Department renews workplace rights agreements with embassies

Labor Secretary Tom Perez on Monday renewed workplace rights agreements with embassy officials in five Central American, South American and Asia-Pacific countries.

Under the agreements, the Labor Department’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration and Wage and Hour Division will work with consulates to provide workers from Ecuador, Guatemala, Honduras, Peru and the Philippines, including those with H-2A and H-2B visas, information about U.S. labor laws.

{mosads}The renewed partnerships come at the start of Labor Rights Week in the U.S. The department’s theme this year is “Your Work Has Dignity. Know Your Rights.”

“Partnerships and outreach play a critical role in advancing workers’ rights and enforcing the laws that protect people at work,” Perez said in a statement. “By renewing these five embassy agreements, we will continue to enhance workers’ awareness about their rights and promote a better understanding of labor laws and practices in the U.S.”

The agency said the partnerships help it enforce labor laws more effectively, especially in high-risk and low-wage industries where violations are more likely to occur.