President-elect Donald Trump announced Friday that he would nominate outgoing Republican Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer to be his labor secretary.
“Lori has worked tirelessly with both Business and Labor to build America’s workforce, and support the hardworking men and women of America,” Trump said in a statement.
Chavez-DeRemer lost her House reelection bid earlier this month after serving one term in Congress. A union-friendly Republican, she had the backing of Teamsters President Sean O’Brien to lead the Labor Department under Trump.
The incoming president’s choice of Chavez-DeRemer is a surprise considering her track record of working with labor groups. She was a rare Republican supporter of the Protecting the Right to Organize Act, which would dramatically overhaul labor law to make it easier to form unions. Business groups have vehemently opposed the legislation.
The anti-union National Right to Work Committee had publicly opposed Chavez-DeRemer for the labor role, saying she…
