Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer made headlines on Friday, May 2, 2025, when she enthusiastically endorsed the April jobs report, describing it as the beginning of a "golden age" for American workers under President Trump's administration. "With President Trump at the helm, I'm telling you, he mentioned to the American people over and over again that the golden age was coming. I will tell you, the golden age is here," Chavez-DeRemer stated during an appearance on "Varney & Co." The Department of Labor reported that employers added 177,000 jobs in April, exceeding economists' expectations, though slightly lower than the 185,000 jobs added in March. The unemployment rate remained steady at 4.2%, aligning with projections. Chavez-DeRemer highlighted specific growth areas in the April report, noting increases in government employment across state and local levels, which added a combined 19,000 jobs, offsetting a decline of 9,000 federal positions. The health care sector also experienced notable growth, while manufacturing saw a slight decline of 1,000 jobs. Despite the manufacturing decrease, the Labor Secretary remained optimistic: "With the investment of these large companies back into the American workforce and the American manufacturing sector, transportation, health care, we're seeing the jobs tick up," she said. Chavez-DeRemer pledged to focus on workforce development, stating, "We are gonna make sure that our workforce is skilled, re-skilled, up-skilled, because that is what the American worker deserves to keep more money in their pocket." This recent economic commentary comes less than two months after her confirmation as Labor Secretary on March 10, 2025. Chavez-DeRemer, a former Republican congresswoman from Oregon, received bipartisan support with a 67-32 confirmation vote that included 17 Democratic senators voting in her favor. Her confirmation was notable as she now leads a department responsible for enforcing worker protections at a time when the administration has been working to reduce government personnel. The Department of Labor oversees nearly 16,000 full-time employees with a proposed budget of $13.9 billion for fiscal year 2025. Chavez-DeRemer made history in 2022 as the first Republican woman from Oregon to serve in the U.S. House of Representatives before losing her reelection bid in 2024. Her past support for pro-labor policies, including being one of just three Republicans who supported the Protecting the Right to Organize Act during her time in Congress, has led some experts to suggest she may oversee a more worker-friendly Department of Labor than typically seen in Republican administrations.
