The commissioner is the chief executive of Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries and serves a four-year term.

[1] The commissioner is also chairperson of the State Apprenticeship and Training Council and executive secretary of the Wage and Hour Commission.

The commissioner enforces state laws related to employment, housing, and public accommodation with respect to discrimination, wages, hours of employment, working conditions, prevailing wage rates, and child labor.

The commissioner also enforces state laws prohibiting discrimination related to vocational, professional, and trade schools, and administers licensing required by many professional services.

It was called Oregon Commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics and Inspector of Factories and Workshops from 1918 until 1930.