The commissioner heads the N.C. Department of Labor.

The state department is charged by statute with promoting the "health, safety, and general well-being" of more than 4 million workers across the state.

Among other things, the department is responsible for overseeing workplace safety, inspecting elevators, mines and boilers, and administering the state's wage and hour law.

The labor commissioner oversees the Division of Occupational Safety and Health, which enforces the federal worker safety laws in North Carolina; the Division of Research and Policy, which compiles labor statistics; the Division of Standards and Inspections and several administrative divisions.

The Standards and Inspections division is made up of several smaller agencies: the Apprenticeship and Training Bureau, which regulates training programs; the Bureau of Boiler Safety, which inspects boilers and pressure vessels; the Elevator and Amusement Device Bureau, which inspects elevators and amusement rides; the Mine and Quarry Bureau, which provides training; the Wage and Hour Bureau, which enforces state laws on wages and drug testing; the Employment Discrimination Bureau, which looks into complaints about retaliation, safety and pay issues.

As a statewide elected official, the labor commissioner also sits on the Council of State.