Massachusetts Secretary of Labor and Workforce Development Lauren Jones has been named recipient of the 2026 Frances Perkins Award by Associated Industries of Massachusetts (AIM).

AIM cited Secretary Jones for her efforts to support working families and caregivers in the workplace during a period of challenging worker shortages.  The Perkins Award, named for the nation’s first female Secretary of Labor, recognizes individuals or organizations who demonstrate a significant commitment to workplace equity, pay transparency, and supporting caregivers on the job.

Secretary Jones will receive the award at the AIM Annual Meeting on May 7 in Boston.

“We are delighted to honor Secretary Lauren Jones with an award named for a woman who held the same position at the federal level almost 100 years ago,” said Brooke Thomson, President and CEO of AIM.

“Since assuming her current post in January 2023, Secretary Jones has prioritized the needs of family caregivers as a talent attraction and retention strategy. AIM has collaborated with the secretary and her team on this issue because family caregivers represent a sizable population of the workforce across Massachusetts at a time when employers struggle to attract and retain workers.”

Secretary Jones was instrumental in creating the Massachusetts Caregivers Coalition, a partnership of employers, advocates, and government allies with a shared commitment to supporting family caregivers in the workplace.  The Coalition highlights the needs and economic impact of employee caregivers, sharing best practices across all industries and business sizes, championing supportive policies, and fostering a culture of inclusion and empathy for caregivers.

The Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development manages the state’s unemployment insurance program, labor relations, worker safety, as well as some workforce development programs.

Secretary Jones brings to her job more than two decades of experience working in local and state government, non-profits, and the private sector, with a focus on workforce development. Prior to joining the Healey-Driscoll Administration, she served as Executive Vice President of the Massachusetts Business Roundtable and led the organization’s workforce development policy and strategy. She also previously led the Massachusetts market for the non-profit Apprenti, where she worked with companies to cultivate and diversify tech talent through registered apprenticeships.

You are as likely to see Secretary Jones in a factory, day-care center or other workplace as behind a desk. Her popular YouTube channel On the Job with Secretary Jones, documents the secretary doing jobs ranging from stocking trout to installing the parquet floor at TD Garden to preparing for winter storms with the Department of Transportation.

Thomson and AIM collaborated with Secretary Jones and other leaders several years ago to develop reliable data about workplace wage structures, data that paved the way for passage of the wage transparency law in 2024.

“This report will help move Massachusetts forward as we tackle gender and racial wage disparities and inequities within the workplace,” said Secretary Jones said at the time. “Following this report, the Healey-Driscoll Administration will continue to work with stakeholders, including employers, to develop and implement policies that attract and retain skilled, diverse talent right here in Massachusetts.”

Secretary Jones says that the best politicians don’t operate in a vacuum and community engagement is essential in any good public policy process. As the secretary of labor and workforce development for Massachusetts, she practices that creed every day.

“At the end of the day, I’m trying to make sure that the barriers to employment are really lifted. If people can’t physically get to training or they can’t physically get to a job because of transportation, because of housing instability, because of child care, because English is not their first language. We need to think about all of these factors to make sure that we’re able to lift up more people, get more people back into the labor market, and really support a strong workforce,” she told WBUR in 2023.

Lauren Jones earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from Providence College and a master’s degree in public administration from Northeastern University.

Previous winners of the Frances Perkins Award include US House Minority Whip Katherine Clark, Massachusetts Senate President Karen Spilka and House Speaker Ronald Mariano.