Gov.-elect Janet Mills said Friday that she will nominate Laura Fortman as the Commissioner of the Maine Department of Labor.
Fortman served in the same position under former Gov. John Baldacci from 2003 to 2011. She also was deputy administrator of the Wage and Hour Division at the U.S. Department of Labor from 2013 to 2017.
Mills also said she will nominate John Rohde to serve as executive director of the Workers’ Compensation Board. He serves as the general counsel for the Workers’ Compensation Board and has a long history in the organization.
Both nominees still need to be confirmed. Their nominations will be considered by the Labor and Housing Committee and the Maine State Senate.
“Laura’s experience, knowledge and skills will be critical in addressing one of the state’s most pressing issues: our workforce shortage,” said Mills. “Her more than two decades of expertise, both at the state and federal levels, provide her with the tools we need to take bold steps to put Maine on the path to sustained growth and a brighter future.”
Mills added that Rhode has more than 25 years of experience on the Workers’ Board of Compensation.
Mills over the past week has also nominated commissioners to head her departments of transportation, health and human services, financial services, and inland fisheries and wildlife.
