New York: US Labour Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer has become the third member of President Donald Trump’s cabinet to leave within two months, amid controversies during his second term.
White House communications chief Steven Cheung announced her departure on X on Monday, saying she would be moving to the private sector.
Chavez-DeRemer faced allegations that she had an affair with a member of her security detail, took personal trips masked as official tours, drank in her office, and sowed chaos in her office.
All three cabinet officials who have quit are women; the other two are Attorney General Pam Bondi, who was let go this month, and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, who was dismissed last month.
Noem was also pursued by allegations that he had an affair with an adviser, which she denied.
One of the actions during her tenure was to cancel millions of dollars that the department’s Bureau of International Labour Affairs gave to NGOs abroad for anti-slavery and anti- child labour programmes.
Cheung said her deputy, Keith Sonderling, would be the acting labour secretary.
Trump did not react to her ouster, but Cheung said, “She has done a phenomenal job in her role by protecting American workers, enacting fair labour practices, and helping Americans gain additional skills to improve their lives”.
Chavez-DeRemer’s chief of staff and the security person, who was allegedly involved in an affair with her, were fired earlier.
She was under investigation by the department’s inspector general over allegations of professional misconduct and her family’s interference in the department.
Her husband, Shawn DeRemer, was banned from visiting her office after some women staffers alleged he misbehaved with them, with one allegation leading to a police investigation.
The Senate’s Judiciary Committee also initiated a probe of the allegations against her.
Chavez-DeRemer, 58, was a former member of the House of Representatives from Oregon who lost her re-election bid.
Trump picked her for the post because she was backed by the powerful Teamsters trade union, which supported his re-election.
As labour secretary, she ran afoul of unions as she took steps that would dismantle several labour protection rules, such as those relating to workplace safety and minimus wage for some categories of workers.
(IANS)
