By Frankie Sanchez
Correspondant
The White House announced the departure of Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer on Tuesday, April 21, according to AP News.
Chavez-DeRemer was confirmed to the President’s Cabinet in March 2025; before, she had represented an Oregon district in the House of Representatives until she lost reelection in November 2024. The position of Labor Secretary will be filled by the Deputy Labor Secretary Keith Sonderling.
As Labor Secretary, Chavez-DeRemer continued with the administration’s early deregulatory push. She oversaw decisions such as removing a required minimum wage for home health care workers and people with disabilities, as well as rolling back safety regulations for mines.
Former Secretary Chavez-DeRemer has left her position as labor secretary following multiple allegations of abuses of power such as drinking alcohol on the job and having an affair with a subordinate. Chavez-DeRemer’s departure was uniquely revealed by a White House aide, instead of Trump.
In his statement on social media, the White House Communications Director Steven Yeung praised Chavez-DeRemer and said that she would be taking up a position in the private sector, according to AP News.
Yeung said that, “She has done a phenomenal job in her role by protecting American workers, enacting fair labor practices, and helping Americans gain additional skills to improve their lives.”
According to AP News, Chavez-DeRemer has been under investigation since at least January.
The New York Times reported on April 15 that the Inspector General of the Labor Department had material showing that Chavez-DeRemer, some of her aides and family members had engaged in texting and personal messages and requests to young aides.
Per The New York Times, Chevez-DeRemer’s husband and father exchanged messages with young female staffers. Chavez-DeRemer herself was accused of drinking alcohol on the job as well.
In response to those allegations, Chavez-DeRemer claimed that they had been, “... peddled by high-ranked deep state actors who have been coordinating with the one-sided news media and continue to undermine President Trump’s mission.”
Similarly, the White House also dismissed the allegations initially, but after more allegations came out, the scrutiny on Chavez-DeRemer became too much for the administration.
AP’s report quoted Republican Senator John Kennedy of Louisiana saying, “I think the secretary demonstrated a lot of wisdom in resigning…”
In a statement from April 20, Chavez-DeRemer said, “While my time serving in the Administration comes to a conclusion, it doesn’t mean I will stop fighting for American workers.”
