More jobs ‘created or saved’

Good news, even though we're in a jobless "recovery" one employer is increasing its workforce by 33 percent.

Might it be Google? Microsoft? Ford, perhaps?

No. It's the Department of Labor, which says it will hire 250 new investigators and send them out to scour the countryside looking for evil employers skirting federal law.

Apparently, for the Obama administration, private employers need constant and closer watching and guess who's "here to help." If you take the time to read the press release below, you'll be amused to see that it actually says -- I kid you not -- that the Department of Labor will embark upon a publicity campaign called "We Can Help,"

And, trust me, that doesn't mean the feds are here to help employers create new jobs.

The bad news in all this is that at the rate private enterprises disappear in the recession that the Obama Administration has not a clue how to fix, and at the rate the Department of Labor is expanding its investigators, it won't be long before the federal government will have enough investigators to watch employers on a one-on-one basis.

Below you will find the press release from Secretary of Socialism (formerly Secretary of Labor) Hilda L. Solis. Read it. Weep. Hope for change.

Statement by US Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis on Wage and Hour Division’s increased enforcement and outreach efforts

WASHINGTON -- U.S. Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis today issued the following statement regarding the increased enforcement and outreach efforts of the department’s Wage and Hour Division:

"There is no excuse for employers who disregard federal labor standards – especially those that are designed to protect the most vulnerable in the workplace. The failure to comply with these basic labor standards means that workers are not receiving the money they have earned. It is both an economic issue and a fairness issue. America’s workers should rest assured that protecting worker rights is a top priority at the Department of Labor. To make good on that promise, I have hired an additional 250 new wage and hour investigators, a staff increase of more than one third, to ensure that we promptly respond to complaints and can undertake more targeted enforcement.

"In the past three months alone, the department has had several significant enforcement cases, including collecting nearly $2 million in back wages for more than 500 workers.

"In early 2010, the department will launch a national public awareness campaign titled "We Can Help" to inform workers about their rights. The department will work closely with advocacy groups and other stakeholders to ensure that the materials developed for the campaign reach the workers who need them. We will not rest until the law is followed by every employer, and each worker is treated and compensated fairly."