The Secretary of State for Employment was a position in the

Cabinet of the United Kingdom The Cabinet of the United Kingdom is the senior decision-making body of His Majesty's Government. A committee of the Privy Council, it is chaired by the prime minister and its members include secretaries of state and other senior ministers. T ...

. In 1995 it was merged with

Secretary of State for Education The secretary of state for education, also referred to as the education secretary, is a Secretary of State (United Kingdom), secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, responsible for the work of the Department for Education. ...

to make the Secretary of State for Education and Employment. In 2001 the employment functions were hived off and transferred to the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions.

Minister of Labour (1916–1940)

Minister of Labour and National Service (1940–1959)

Minister of Labour (1959–1968)

Secretary of State for Employment and Productivity (1968–1970)

Secretary of State for Employment (1970–1995)

Secretary of State for Education and Employment (1995–2001)

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Gillian Shephard Gillian Patricia Shephard, Baroness Shephard of Northwold, (''née'' Watts; born 22 January 1940), is a British Conservative politician who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for South West Norfolk from 1987 to 2005. Shephard served as a Cabin ...

, width=120, 5 July 1995 , width=120, 2 May 1997 ,

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...

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John Major Sir John Major (born 29 March 1943) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from 1990 to 1997, and as Member of Parliament ...

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David Blunkett David Blunkett, Baron Blunkett, (born 6 June 1947) is a British Labour Party politician who has been a Member of the House of Lords since 2015, and previously served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Sheffield Brightside and Hillsborough ...

, 2 May 1997 , 8 June 2001 ,

Labour Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...

, style="background-color: {{party color, Labour Party (UK)", ,

Tony Blair Sir Anthony Charles Lynton Blair (born 6 May 1953) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007. He previously served as Leader of th ...

The office was merged with the

Department of Social Security The Department of Social Security (DSS) was a governmental agency in the United Kingdom from 1988 to 2001. The old abbreviation is still often used informally. Advertisements for rented accommodation used to describe prospective tenants who wou ...

to form the

Department for Work & Pensions , type = Department , seal = , logo = Department for Work and Pensions logo.svg , logo_width = 166px , formed = , preceding1 = , jurisdiction = Government of the United Kingdom , headquarters = Caxton House7th Floor6–12 Tothill Stree ...

in 2001.

Employment Employment is a relationship between two parties regulating the provision of paid labour services. Usually based on a contract, one party, the employer, which might be a corporation, a not-for-profit organization, a co-operative, or any othe ...

Defunct ministerial offices in the United Kingdom