Washington, DC — Douglas L. Parker was sworn in as Assistant Secretary of Labor on Wednesday, Nov. 3, to lead the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
He previously served in the Obama Administration as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy in the Department of Labor’s Mine Safety and Health Administration, and was a member of the Biden-Harris transition team focused on worker health and safety issues.
He also held positions as a senior policy advisor and special assistant at the Department of Labor. He most recently served as chief of California’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA), a position he held since 2019.
Prior to his appointment to Cal/OSHA, Parker was executive director of Worksafe, an Oakland, California-based legal services provider.
Before serving in the Obama Administration, Parker was a partner at the law firm Mooney, Green, Saindon, Murphy and Welch in Washington, D.C.
He began his legal career as a staff attorney at the United Mine Workers of America.
Prior to law school, Parker worked in the private sector as a sales and marketing director, in communications for the Democratic National Committee, and was a staff assistant for the late U.S. Sen. Paul Wellstone, D-MN.
Parker earned a J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law and a B.A. in history from James Madison University. He is married and has two daughters. Parker is originally from Bluefield, WV, and grew up in Lynchburg, VA.
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