Trump nominates a Republican who is favorable to unions for Secretary of Labor
Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer received backing from several prominent unions during her unsuccessful reelection campaign.
TroibNews 
President-elect Donald Trump has selected Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer to become the Labor Secretary, a decision that could enhance his appeal among organized labor after he gained traction with working-class voters in his electoral victory over Vice President Kamala Harris.
Chavez-DeRemer, who is 56, becomes the second Hispanic individual appointed to Trump’s Cabinet, joining Sen. Marco Rubio. In this year's election, Trump garnered significant support from Latino voters, diminishing the Democrats' traditional advantage.
This nomination diverges from expectations that Trump would choose a Labor Secretary who would adopt a tough stance against unions and favor business interests, although he has other avenues to influence policy in that regard.
“Lori has worked tirelessly with both Business and Labor to build America’s workforce, and support the hardworking men and women of America,” Trump stated. “I look forward to working with her to create tremendous opportunity for American Workers, to expand Training and Apprenticeships, to grow wages and improve working conditions, to bring back our Manufacturing jobs.”
On Thursday, Chavez-DeRemer met with Trump in Florida, and he offered her the Labor position immediately, according to a source familiar with the matter.
In Oregon, several prominent unions endorsed Chavez-DeRemer’s reelection campaign this year, although she ultimately lost to Democratic state Rep. Janelle Bynum in a highly competitive House race. The Oregon AFL-CIO supported Bynum, but Chavez-DeRemer received backing from several individual unions within the state.
While serving in the House, Chavez-DeRemer was a member of the Education and Workforce Committee and was among only three House Republicans to sponsor the Democratic-supported PRO Act this Congress, which aimed to facilitate unionization and included various pro-labor measures. She also co-sponsored a bill aimed at lowering barriers for public safety workers to engage in collective bargaining.
Despite this, the national AFL-CIO has rated her labor-related performance poorly, giving her a 10 percent legislative score in their annual ranking of lawmakers.
PMG first reported that Teamsters President Sean O’Brien, who garnered support from the GOP in the recent election cycle, advocated for Trump to appoint Chavez-DeRemer. His recommendation was supported by some Republican lawmakers.
“Thank you @realDonaldTrump for putting American workers first by nominating Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer for US Labor Secretary,” O’Brien wrote on social media shortly after the announcement, sharing a photo of the president-elect with the representative. “Now let’s grow wages and improve working conditions nationwide.”
It’s noteworthy that Chavez-DeRemer is the daughter of a Teamsters union member.
If the Senate confirms her, Chavez-DeRemer will oversee a large department responsible for key agencies that manage the U.S. workforce, enforce labor laws, and regulate workplace safety. She will join several current and former House members in prominent roles within the Trump administration, and since she is an outgoing member, her nomination won’t affect the slim Republican majority at the start of the coming year.
Under President Joe Biden, who characterized himself as the most labor-friendly president ever, the Labor Department and its sub-agencies pursued a robust pro-worker agenda concerning union organizing rules, overtime pay, worker classification, and various employment issues. This approach faced significant opposition from business interests, which successfully blocked many regulatory initiatives through the courts.
Chavez-DeRemer’s nomination may represent the best possible outcome for labor advocates and unions compared to other candidates considered for the position, including former fast-food CEO Andy Puzder—who Trump unsuccessfully nominated for the Labor Department during his first transition—and Pat Pizzella, Trump’s former deputy Labor Secretary, who now serves as the mayor of Pinehurst, North Carolina.
Anti-union organizations such as the Coalition for a Democratic Workplace and the National Right to Work Committee sought to discourage Trump from selecting Chavez-DeRemer, but their efforts were evidently unsuccessful.
Business groups were quick to congratulate Chavez-DeRemer on her appointment, though they are cautiously awaiting her plans for the agency.
"With the regulatory onslaught of the last four years coming to an end, the franchise business model is poised to provide economic opportunity and upward mobility that Americans are so desperately looking for after four years of crushing inflation and burdensome regulations," stated Matt Haller, president of the International Franchise Association, a group that frequently opposed the Biden administration. "We look forward to working with the Trump Administration to create even more opportunities for small business owners and protect America’s greatest business model.”
At the same time, some unions are apprehensive about interpreting the nomination, considering other positions that Trump and his allies took during his first term and throughout the campaign.
Becky Pringle, president of the National Education Association, the nation’s largest union, remarked that Chavez-DeRemer's "record stands in stark contrast to Donald Trump’s anti-worker, anti-union record, and his extreme Project 2025 agenda that would gut workplace protections, make it harder for workers to unionize, and diminish the voice of working people."
"Educators and working families across the nation will be watching Lori Chavez-DeRemer as she moves through the confirmation process and hope to hear a pledge from her to continue to stand up for workers and students as her record suggests, not blind loyalty to the Project 2025 agenda," Pringle added in a release.
Meredith Lee Hill contributed to this report.
Aarav Patel contributed to this report for TROIB News
Chavez-DeRemer, who is 56, becomes the second Hispanic individual appointed to Trump’s Cabinet, joining Sen. Marco Rubio. In this year's election, Trump garnered significant support from Latino voters, diminishing the Democrats' traditional advantage.
This nomination diverges from expectations that Trump would choose a Labor Secretary who would adopt a tough stance against unions and favor business interests, although he has other avenues to influence policy in that regard.
“Lori has worked tirelessly with both Business and Labor to build America’s workforce, and support the hardworking men and women of America,” Trump stated. “I look forward to working with her to create tremendous opportunity for American Workers, to expand Training and Apprenticeships, to grow wages and improve working conditions, to bring back our Manufacturing jobs.”
On Thursday, Chavez-DeRemer met with Trump in Florida, and he offered her the Labor position immediately, according to a source familiar with the matter.
In Oregon, several prominent unions endorsed Chavez-DeRemer’s reelection campaign this year, although she ultimately lost to Democratic state Rep. Janelle Bynum in a highly competitive House race. The Oregon AFL-CIO supported Bynum, but Chavez-DeRemer received backing from several individual unions within the state.
While serving in the House, Chavez-DeRemer was a member of the Education and Workforce Committee and was among only three House Republicans to sponsor the Democratic-supported PRO Act this Congress, which aimed to facilitate unionization and included various pro-labor measures. She also co-sponsored a bill aimed at lowering barriers for public safety workers to engage in collective bargaining.
Despite this, the national AFL-CIO has rated her labor-related performance poorly, giving her a 10 percent legislative score in their annual ranking of lawmakers.
PMG first reported that Teamsters President Sean O’Brien, who garnered support from the GOP in the recent election cycle, advocated for Trump to appoint Chavez-DeRemer. His recommendation was supported by some Republican lawmakers.
“Thank you @realDonaldTrump for putting American workers first by nominating Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer for US Labor Secretary,” O’Brien wrote on social media shortly after the announcement, sharing a photo of the president-elect with the representative. “Now let’s grow wages and improve working conditions nationwide.”
It’s noteworthy that Chavez-DeRemer is the daughter of a Teamsters union member.
If the Senate confirms her, Chavez-DeRemer will oversee a large department responsible for key agencies that manage the U.S. workforce, enforce labor laws, and regulate workplace safety. She will join several current and former House members in prominent roles within the Trump administration, and since she is an outgoing member, her nomination won’t affect the slim Republican majority at the start of the coming year.
Under President Joe Biden, who characterized himself as the most labor-friendly president ever, the Labor Department and its sub-agencies pursued a robust pro-worker agenda concerning union organizing rules, overtime pay, worker classification, and various employment issues. This approach faced significant opposition from business interests, which successfully blocked many regulatory initiatives through the courts.
Chavez-DeRemer’s nomination may represent the best possible outcome for labor advocates and unions compared to other candidates considered for the position, including former fast-food CEO Andy Puzder—who Trump unsuccessfully nominated for the Labor Department during his first transition—and Pat Pizzella, Trump’s former deputy Labor Secretary, who now serves as the mayor of Pinehurst, North Carolina.
Anti-union organizations such as the Coalition for a Democratic Workplace and the National Right to Work Committee sought to discourage Trump from selecting Chavez-DeRemer, but their efforts were evidently unsuccessful.
Business groups were quick to congratulate Chavez-DeRemer on her appointment, though they are cautiously awaiting her plans for the agency.
"With the regulatory onslaught of the last four years coming to an end, the franchise business model is poised to provide economic opportunity and upward mobility that Americans are so desperately looking for after four years of crushing inflation and burdensome regulations," stated Matt Haller, president of the International Franchise Association, a group that frequently opposed the Biden administration. "We look forward to working with the Trump Administration to create even more opportunities for small business owners and protect America’s greatest business model.”
At the same time, some unions are apprehensive about interpreting the nomination, considering other positions that Trump and his allies took during his first term and throughout the campaign.
Becky Pringle, president of the National Education Association, the nation’s largest union, remarked that Chavez-DeRemer's "record stands in stark contrast to Donald Trump’s anti-worker, anti-union record, and his extreme Project 2025 agenda that would gut workplace protections, make it harder for workers to unionize, and diminish the voice of working people."
"Educators and working families across the nation will be watching Lori Chavez-DeRemer as she moves through the confirmation process and hope to hear a pledge from her to continue to stand up for workers and students as her record suggests, not blind loyalty to the Project 2025 agenda," Pringle added in a release.
Meredith Lee Hill contributed to this report.
Aarav Patel contributed to this report for TROIB News
