|
"I'm proud to appoint Catherine as the Director of the Illinois
Department of Labor. She brings vast legislative and policy
experience to this position. I am more than confident that Catherine
will be a great asset to the administration in crafting and
implementing policies to help and protect Illinois workers," said
Gov. Blagojevich. For the past nineteen years, Ms. Shannon has
been a leader on labor issues and in state government. She served as
Legislative and Political Director of the Illinois AFL-CIO for nine
years, as Legislative Director of the Illinois Federation of
Teachers, and on the research and appropriations staff of House
Speaker Michael Madigan.
As the Legislative and Political Director of the Illinois
AFL-CIO, Ms. Shannon drafted and promoted legislation to improve the
pay and working conditions of Illinois workers and their families.
She was the leading advocate for improvements to Illinois workers'
protection laws, including the Prevailing Wage, Equal Pay and
Minimum Wage Acts.
[to top of second column]
 |
 "I am grateful that Governor Blagojevich has chosen me to lead a
Department that, under his leadership has achieved tremendous
changes for working families. As a union member and labor advocate,
it gives me great pride to lead the state's labor enforcement to
ensure fair wages and healthy work environments for Illinois
workers. I look forward to serving the people of this state and
advancing the Governor's labor agenda," said Ms. Shannon.
Ms. Shannon replaces Art Ludwig, who served as IDOL Director from
July 2004 through December 2006. Ms. Shannon has a bachelor's degree
in political science from Northern Illinois University in DeKalb.
She lives in Springfield with her husband and two children.
(Text
copied from file received from the
Illinois Office of Communication and Information)
 |
