Labor and Industrial Relations

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR AND INDUSTRY

Joseph F. DiDomenico, Commissioner
Margaret W. Kimble, Deputy Commissioner
Matthew Gibson, Chief Boiler Inspector

12 East Mulberry Street, Baltimore 2 Telephone: Lexington 9-3596

The Department of Labor and Industry is under the direction of
a Commissioner appointed by the Governor for a four-year term.
The Commissioner collects and publishes statistics and other data
concerning labor in Maryland, its condition, and the causes of
strikes and disagreements between employers and employees (Code
1961, 1957 supp., Art. 89, see. 1, 2). He follows the negotiations
in all labor disputes occurring within the State and must do all in
his power to promote the voluntary arbitration, mediation, and con-
ciliation of such disputes. To this end he may appoint, subject to
the approval of the Governor, boards of arbitration to conduct in-
vestigations and publish findings for the settlement of these disputes.
The Commissioner may also himself conduct such investigations and
publish such findings (Code 1951, Art. 89, secs. 4, 12).

Upon petition, the Commissioner also approves and supervises the
holding of consent elections and makes a final determination of the
facts ascertained as the result of such elections (Code 1951, 1957
supp.. Art. 89, sec. 12A).

The Department licenses and supervises all fee-charging employ-
ment agencies operating within Maryland, and it enforces the laws
that determine the hours of labor for females. It also carries out
the provisions of the Child Labor Law, which require minors between
the ages of fourteen and eighteen to receive employment certificates
from the Department, and before such certificates are issued, to
pass a physical examination given by the physicians of the Depart-
ment (Code 1951, Art. 89, secs. 4.12; Art. 48, secs. 167-76). The
Department cooperates with the Federal government in the enforce-
ment of the Walsh-Healy Act by issuing employment certificates
for minors subject to the child labor provisions of the Fair Labor
Standards Act. In addition, the agency inspects all boilers in the
State and enforces the Steam Boiler Inspection Law.

Division of Industrial Safety

The division makes necessary regulations to promote industrial
safety in the manufacturing plants of the State. It makes periodic
inspections of the various industrial establishments and may require
any industry under the jurisdiction of the Industrial Safety Act
to correct any unsafe condition or practice (Code 1951, 1957 supp.,
Art. 89, secs. 16-36; Art. 101, sec. 68A).

Appropriations 1957 1958

General Funds $246,154 $233,833
Special Funds 10,000 10,000

Totals $256,154 $243,833
Staff: 45.