Hilda Solis facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Hilda Solis
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Official portrait, 2012
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| Member of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors from the 1st district |
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| Assumed office December 1, 2014 |
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| Preceded by | Gloria Molina |
| Chair of Los Angeles County | |
| In office December 8, 2020 – December 7, 2021 |
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| Preceded by | Kathryn Barger |
| Succeeded by | Holly Mitchell |
| In office December 8, 2015 – December 6, 2016 |
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| Preceded by | Michael D. Antonovich (Mayor) |
| Succeeded by | Mark Ridley-Thomas |
| 25th United States Secretary of Labor | |
| In office February 24, 2009 – January 22, 2013 |
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| President | Barack Obama |
| Deputy | Seth Harris |
| Preceded by | Elaine Chao |
| Succeeded by | Tom Perez |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from California |
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| In office January 3, 2001 – February 24, 2009 |
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| Preceded by | Matthew G. Martínez |
| Succeeded by | Judy Chu |
| Constituency | 31st district (2001–2003) 32nd district (2003–2009) |
| Member of the California State Senate from the 24th district |
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| In office December 5, 1994 – December 31, 2000 |
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| Preceded by | Arthur Torres |
| Succeeded by | Gloria Romero |
| Member of the California State Assembly from the 57th district |
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| In office December 7, 1992 – November 30, 1994 |
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| Preceded by | Dave Elder |
| Succeeded by | Martin Gallegos |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Hilda Lucia Solis
October 20, 1957 Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse | Sami Sayyad |
| Education | California State Polytechnic University, Pomona (BA) University of Southern California (MPA) |
Hilda Lucia Solis (born October 20, 1957) is an American politician who serves on the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors. She has spent her career working to improve the lives of working families and protect the environment.
From 2009 to 2013, Solis was the United States Secretary of Labor under President Barack Obama. She was the first Latina to lead a major federal department. Before that, she was a member of the United States House of Representatives for California from 2001 to 2009.
Solis grew up in a working-class family and was the first in her family to go to college. Her experiences inspired her to enter public service. She has worked to raise the minimum wage, fight for safer workplaces, and ensure clean air and water for all communities.
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Early Life and Schooling
Hilda Solis was born in Los Angeles, California. Her parents were immigrants who met in a citizenship class. Her father, Raúl, came from Mexico, and her mother, Juana, came from Nicaragua. Her father was a union member who worked in a battery recycling plant. Her mother worked on an assembly line for the toy company Mattel for over 20 years.
Growing up in La Puente, California, Hilda was the third of seven children. She helped raise her younger siblings. Her parents taught her the importance of education and hard work.
At her high school, a guidance counselor told her mother that Hilda was "not college material." But another counselor encouraged her, and she became the first person in her family to attend college. She went to California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, and paid for it with grants and part-time jobs. She graduated in 1979 and later earned a Master's degree from the University of Southern California in 1981.
Beginning a Career in Public Service
After college, Solis worked for a short time in Washington, D.C. She then returned to California to help disadvantaged students prepare for college.
Friends encouraged her to run for office. In 1985, she was elected to the board of trustees for the Rio Hondo Community College District. She worked to improve job training programs and increase diversity among the teachers. This was the start of her long career in politics.
Working in the California Government
In 1992, Solis was elected to the California State Assembly. Two years later, in 1994, she was elected to the California State Senate. She was the first Hispanic woman ever to serve in the State Senate.
Fighting for Workers and the Environment
In the State Senate, Solis focused on helping working people. She led a successful campaign to raise California's minimum wage. She also held hearings to investigate and stop the use of sweatshops, which are factories with very poor and unsafe working conditions.
Solis was also a strong advocate for the environment. She grew up near a large landfill and was concerned about pollution. She wrote a landmark law for environmental justice. This law helps protect low-income and minority communities from having too many landfills or factories that cause pollution in their neighborhoods.
For her work, she received the Profile in Courage Award from the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation in 2000. She was the first woman to win this award.
Serving in the U.S. House of Representatives
In 2000, Solis was elected to the United States House of Representatives. She represented parts of Los Angeles County, including the areas where she grew up.
In Congress, Solis continued her work on environmental and labor issues. She was a member of important committees, including the Committee on Energy and Commerce. She worked to create "green-collar jobs," which are jobs in industries that help the environment, like solar power.
Solis was a strong supporter of labor unions, which are organizations that protect workers' rights. She fought for laws that would make it easier for workers to join unions. She also voted against trade agreements that she believed would harm American workers.
She was re-elected four times by large margins, showing that the people in her district strongly supported her work.
U.S. Secretary of Labor
In December 2008, President-elect Barack Obama chose Hilda Solis to be his United States Secretary of Labor. The Secretary of Labor is in charge of the department that protects workers' rights, improves working conditions, and handles issues like unemployment. After being approved by the United States Senate, she took office in February 2009.
As Secretary of Labor, Solis promised to be "a new sheriff in town." She wanted to make sure that laws protecting workers were strongly enforced.
Key Actions as Secretary
- Workplace Safety: Solis's department increased the number of investigators to make sure workplaces were safe. After a tragic mine disaster in West Virginia in 2010, she ordered a full review of mine safety rules.
- Fair Pay: She focused on making sure workers were paid the wages they were owed. In 2012, the Labor Department collected a record $280 million in back wages for over 300,000 workers.
- Protecting Young Workers: Solis led a campaign against farm owners who were illegally employing children or not paying their workers fairly.
Solis served as Secretary of Labor for President Obama's entire first term. She resigned in January 2013, saying she wanted to return to her home in Southern California.
Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors
After leaving Washington, D.C., Solis decided to run for a seat on the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors. This five-member board is a very powerful local government body. It oversees a budget of billions of dollars and serves over 10 million people.
Solis was elected in June 2014, representing the First District. This area includes many of the neighborhoods where she grew up.
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Priorities as a Supervisor
As a supervisor, Solis has focused on several key issues:
- Environmental Cleanup: She led the effort to get state and county funds to clean up lead contamination from a closed battery plant called Exide. This protected the health of thousands of families.
- Affordable Housing: Solis has worked to address the high cost of housing and the problem of homelessness in Los Angeles.
- Community Support: In 2017, she led the effort to replace Columbus Day with Indigenous Peoples Day as a county holiday. This was done to honor the original inhabitants of the continent.
Solis was re-elected in 2018 and continues to serve on the board. She has served as the board's chair, a rotating position, two times. She remains a powerful voice for working families and environmental protection in Los Angeles County.
Awards and Honors
- In 2000, she received the Profile in Courage Award from the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation.
- Her former university, Cal Poly Pomona, holds an annual Hilda L. Solis Scholarship Dinner to raise money for students.
- A learning academy and a housing village for the homeless in Los Angeles have been named in her honor.
- In 2022, she was appointed to the Board of Trustees for the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.
See also
In Spanish: Hilda Solís para niños
- List of female United States Cabinet members
- List of Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States Congress
- Women in the United States House of Representatives
Images for kids
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Solis (third from left) at a 2006 ceremony for a conservation project along the San Gabriel River.
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New official Congressional portrait, 2007.
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Secretary Solis is greeted on her first day of work at the Frances Perkins Building.
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Official portrait as Secretary of Labor, 2009.
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Secretary Solis with farm worker organizer Richard Chavez in 2010, next to a mural of his brother César Chávez.
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The April 2010 meeting of the G20 labor ministers at the Department of Labor was the first of its kind.
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Secretary Solis touring a Maryland General Motors facility in 2012 with Governor Martin O'Malley.
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On her last day as secretary, Solis was given the chair she used in Cabinet meetings as a farewell gift.
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Supervisor Solis at a local union office opening in 2017.
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Supervisor Solis speaking at a 2018 rally.
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Supervisor Solis testifying at an environmental hearing in early March 2020.
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Ms. magazine cover (2011)
