This story was originally published by The 19th.
President-elect Donald Trump has chosen Lori Chavez-DeRemer, one of most pro-union Republicans to recently serve in Congress, to be his Labor secretary.
Chavez-DeRemer lost her reelection bid to represent Oregon in the House by a narrow margin. Her campaign was backed by about two dozen unions, including those representing flight attendants and grocery store workers.
Sean O’Brien, the president of the influential International Brotherhood of Teamsters union, pushed for Chavez-DeRemer’s nomination.
In Congress, she was one of three House Republicans to support the PRO Act, one of the most substantial union bills in recent years that would strengthen workers’ rights to organize and limit retaliation from employers. She was also one of the few House Republicans to support the Public Service Freedom to Negotiate Act, which would expand collective bargaining rights for state and local government workers — positions predominately held by women.
Chavez-DeRemer has advocated for improvements to the child care system. Last year, she was one of only five Republicans who responded to The 19th’s questions about the kind of child care policy they’d support, saying she was in favor of expanding a tax credit for employers who offer child care.
She has spoken about the importance of the Republican party being the party of workers “with President Trump leading the way.”
“Lori has worked tirelessly with both Business and Labor to build America’s workforce, and support the hardworking men and women of America,” Trump wrote on Truth Social, his social media platform.
On X, O’Brien, of the Teamsters union, thanked Trump for “putting American workers first” with Chavez-DeRemer’s nomination.
“Nearly a year ago, you joined us for a Teamsters roundtable and pledged to listen to workers and find common ground to protect and........