U.S. Secretary of Labor Lori Chavez-DeRemer today celebrated 100 days since she was sworn in as the 30th Labor Secretary, marking a key milestone in her efforts to advance President Trump’s America First agenda by quickly delivering on her mission to empower U.S. workers and employers.
Since taking office, Secretary Chavez-DeRemer has hit the ground running to support the President’s bold, pro-growth policies that have spurred job creation, cut red tape, and ushered in a new Golden Age of economic opportunity for the American workforce.
“From day one, I promised to put American workers first and deliver on President Trump’s commitment to revitalize our workforce,” said Secretary Chavez-DeRemer. “Since then, we’ve jumpstarted a new Golden Age for American workers by creating hundreds of thousands of jobs, cutting burdensome regulations, saving taxpayer dollars, and investing in the skills and training that power our economy. I remain committed to building a strong, resilient labor force where workers and businesses can continue to grow and succeed.”
Launching the ‘America at Work’ listening tour
In April, Secretary Chavez-DeRemer embarked on her America at Work listening tour to discuss the challenges and opportunities facing hardworking Americans. Throughout her tour, the Secretary has met with manufacturers, union leaders, tradesmen, construction workers, longshoremen, and various stakeholders to ensure real-world experiences help shape and modernize federal labor policies and practices.
From Oregon to Pennsylvania, she has engaged directly with American workers to learn more about how the federal government can assist in developing a skilled workforce and expanding opportunities for workers to achieve the American Dream.
For example, the Secretary joined Anheuser-Busch in Ohio to announce a $300 million manufacturing investment through its “Brewing Futures” initiative, which includes building a new regional Technical Excellence Center in Columbus.
She also joined McDonald’s USA President Joe Erlinger to celebrate the 10-year anniversary of the company’s Archways to Opportunity educational program, which has created opportunities over the past decade for over 90,000 restaurant crew members by providing over $240 million in tuition assistance.
Supporting job creation
Since President Trump took office, the U.S. economy has added over 508,000 jobs, surpassing expectations for three consecutive months. Notably, native-born workers have accounted for all job gains, and trillions in private investments have fueled rapid job creation in critical sectors across the economy, including construction.
Expanding apprenticeships
In April, President Trump signed an executive order calling on the Department of Labor to modernize workforce development programs and invest in opportunities to upskill workers to meet current labor market demands. The department has begun a full review of federal workforce programs to:
- Expand pathways beyond four-year degrees.
- Reach one million new active apprentices nationwide.
- Increase transparency and accountability in workforce development programs by collecting relevant data.
Since January 20, 2025, over 117,000 new apprentices have registered, and there are currently over 677,000 active apprentices nationwide.
On April 30, Secretary Chavez-DeRemer celebrated National Apprenticeship Day by welcoming the International Association of Fire Fighters to the Department of Labor. The signing ceremony recognized IAFF’s new National Apprenticeship Guidelines Standards and honored the union’s commitment to training their firefighters and emergency personnel through the Registered Apprenticeship model, marking a significant step toward achieving the Administration’s goal of one million new active apprentices.
Returning billions in COVID-era funds
Under Secretary Chavez-DeRemer’s leadership, the Department of Labor has returned over $4.4 billion in unspent and unusable COVID-era funding to American taxpayers, ensuring the department is delivering on its commitment to root out waste, fraud, and abuse, and to be responsible stewards of taxpayers’ hard-earned money.
Protecting unemployment benefits for American citizens
In April, Secretary Chavez-DeRemer issued a warning to governors that states extending unemployment benefits to illegal immigrants would result in a loss of federal funding. The move reinforced the department’s commitment to uphold immigration law and prioritize benefits for American workers.
Purging discriminatory DEI policies
One of the first responsibilities Secretary Chavez-DeRemer fulfilled was carrying out President Trump’s executive order to eliminate unlawful diversity, equity, and inclusion offices and policies, including by overhauling the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs that focused primarily on DEI enforcement.
Restoring retirement plan flexibility
In May, the Department of Labor rescinded a 2022 compliance bulletin that discouraged fiduciaries from including cryptocurrency options in 401(k) retirement plans. By rolling back this overreach, the Secretary ensured investment decisions were placed back in the hands of fiduciaries instead of D.C. bureaucrats.
Launching opinion letter program to expand compliance assistance
In June, the Department of Labor launched an opinion letter program to expand the its longstanding commitment to providing meaningful compliance assistance. This action represented a step forward in the Secretary’s mission to help workers, employers, and other stakeholders understand how federal labor laws apply in specific workplace situations.