On March 10, in a 67-32 vote, the U.S. Senate confirmed Lori Chavez-DeRemer to serve as secretary of the U.S. Department of Labor. Sens. Rand Paul, R-Ky., Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and Ted Budd, R-N.C., voted against Chavez-DeRemer, while seventeen Democrats voted for her. The Senate floor vote to confirm her follows a Feb. 19 Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee hearing and a Feb. 27 14-9 vote to advance her nomination.

On March 11, Chavez-DeRemer was sworn in, stating in a DOL news release, “I’m deeply grateful for this opportunity to continue serving my country, and I’ll work tirelessly to help President Trump put the American Worker First. This administration has a clear mandate to renew the American Dream for hardworking men and women across the country. As a small businesswoman and the daughter of a Teamster, I will act on my experience and work with business and labor to support good-paying jobs, grow our economy, and ensure every American can enjoy a comfortable retirement.” 

Kristen Swearingen, ABC vice president of legislative & political affairs, gave the following statement to Engineering News-Record regarding Chavez-DeRemer’s confirmation.

“ABC is hopeful that we can find common ground,” said Swearingen. “All Americans––nonunion and union––deserve a labor secretary and DOL leader who will create the conditions so that every worker and job creator can choose how to achieve their career dreams and prosper in a safe and healthy environment.”

Swearingen went on to say that ABC intends to hold Chavez-DeRemer to her confirmation testimony commitments in late February to protect all workers and support right-to-work laws and secret ballot elections. ABC, which represents mostly nonunion contractors, also said it still stands “vehemently opposed to the Protecting the Right to Organize Act and all of its components.”

Prior to President Donald Trump’s nomination of Chavez-DeRemer, the ABC-led Coalition for a Democratic Workplace expressed concern with her previous support for the PRO Act.

Chavez-DeRemer becomes the 30th labor secretary in U.S. history, and the first to be confirmed to the role since former Boston Mayor Marty Walsh left the Biden administration in early 2023.