Rep. Lori Chavez-Deremer (R-OR) arrives to a meeting with House Republicans at the U.S. Capitol Building on October 19, 2023 in Washington, D.C.
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Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images North America
President-elect Donald Trump has tapped Republican Congresswoman Lori Chavez-DeRemer of Oregon for the job of labor secretary.
Throughout his campaign, Trump made many promises to America’s workers — that he would protect their jobs, bring manufacturing back to the U.S., and restore their ability to achieve the American dream. He also proposed ending taxes on tips and overtime. Pieces of this agenda could end up on Chavez-DeRemer’s plate.
In recent days, Teamsters President Sean O’Brien had pushed for Chavez-DeRemer’s selection, noting that she is one of only a few Republicans in Congress to have supported the PRO Act, a bill aimed at making it easier for workers to organize unions, including by overturning state Right to Work laws, which weaken unions.
In her re-election bid this fall, Chavez-DeRemer received the endorsements of a number of unions, but ended up losing her seat.
President of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters Sean O’Brien speaks on stage on the first day of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
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Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images North America
How will unions fare under Trump?
Trump won a sizable amount of support from union workers in the 2024 election. While O’Brien declined to endorse Trump after speaking at the Republican National Convention, he nonetheless signaled a willingness to work with whichever administration addressed issues important to his 1.3 million members.
It’s unclear how Trump might treat unions. On the campaign trail, he joked with billionaire Elon Musk about firing striking workers and said UAW President Shawn Fain should be fired. Still, some close to Trump, including Vice President-elect JD Vance and Sen. Marco Rubio — his nominee to lead the State Department — have supported organized labor in the past.
While Chavez-DeRemer is seen as far more pro-union than others rumored to be under consideration by Trump, it’s hard to imagine the Trump administration taking as active a role in high-profile labor disputes as President Biden’s picks for the job have done. Most recently, Acting Labor Secretary Julie Su helped broker a deal on wages between ocean carriers and East Coast dockworkers. Those negotiations are ongoing, however. A deadline to reach a final deal comes just five days before the inauguration in January.
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