Trump Rewards Teamsters with Labor Secretary Pick
Teamsters President Sean O'Brien made a risky bet that paid off.
In a twist that the business community likely didn’t see coming, President-elect Donald Trump has nominated pro-union Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer (R-Ore.) to serve as Labor Secretary in his upcoming cabinet.
Teamsters President Sean O’Brien, who recommended the Republican Congresswoman for the position earlier this week, applauded Trump on X, writing that the President-elect, “joined us for a Teamsters roundtable and pledged to listen to workers and find common ground to protect and respect labor in America.” Trump, he continued, “put words into action.”
This is a big deal.
Just days ago, the Washington Post reported that the upcoming Trump Administration was poised to gut the Department of Labor. But Trump’s nomination flies in the face of that doomsday prediction.
Chavez-DeRemer isn’t your typical pro-corporate Republican. During a rally in October, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said that “she’s got more labor union endorsements than any Republican I’ve ever seen in my life.” It’s true. As the New York Times reports, Chavez-DeRemer earned support from ironworkers, firefighters and Teamsters in her district, splitting union endorsements with her Democratic opponent Janelle Bynum.
Chavez-DeRemer, who narrowly lost her reelection bid, was one of just three House GOP members to co-sponsor the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act in 2023. The bill would clear hurdles to union organizing by gutting business-friendly “right-to-work” laws in dozens of states.
Right-to-work laws are specifically meant to disempower unions by outlawing “closed shops,” or unionized places of work that require all employees to be dues-paying members. At the same time, all workers, including those who choose not to pay dues, must be represented by the union, thus creating a free rider problem that strips organized labor of the resources necessary to be effective during contract negotiations. As Truth Out notes:
“…less money also makes it more difficult for unions to engage in advocacy, political lobbying and other activities to protect workers and raise public awareness.”
Voters generally favor the PRO Act. But the bill usually stalls in congressional committees or dies in the Senate. For instance, the Democratic-led House managed to pass the PRO Act in March of 2021, or about a year before Chavez-DeRemer was elected. However, the legislation didn’t meet the required 60-vote threshold for passage in the Senate. Among the Democrats who stood in the way were Sens. Mark Warner (D-Va.), Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) and Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.).
The PRO Act was later reintroduced by Rep. Robert Scott (D-Va.) in the House in 2023, giving Chavez-DeRemer a chance to sign on as a co-sponsor. The bill has since stalled in committee.
Sean O’Brien’s Bet Paid Off
Democrats lost their minds this summer when Teamsters President Sean O’Brien delivered a fiery anti-corporate speech at the Republican National Convention. The publication Labor Notes even accused O’Brien of lending credibility to Trump’s phony pro-worker brand.
But O’Brien likely saw the writing on the wall and took a bet on Trump winning the presidential race. Eventually, the Teamsters decided to keep their powder dry and didn’t endorse Democratic nominee Kamala Harris, which inevitably drew the ire of Democrats who feel entitled to automatic union endorsements. However, O’Brien had the foresight to know someone as notoriously transactional as Donald Trump would reward the decision. O’Brien’s political maneuvering positioned him to have some sway over Trump’s Labor Secretary pick. His bet paid off.
There’s something deeply admirable about a leader who is willing to take on a wave of intense rage from Democrats in order to secure whatever wins he can get for workers in the upcoming Trump White House. O’Brien played the long game and deserves credit.
Trump pretty much said it, he will get his revenge through success. The America First movement is pretty good on lots of issues. Honestly would have been better if it was a moderate left movement but DNC ruined that from happening. I'd like to see more anti-establishment moves and promises and less pro-Isreal.
This is what happens when leaders stop pretending and start acknowledging the truth of the matter. Sean O'Brien knows that Democrats joined up with corporations 30 years ago. Multilateral trade agreements have decimated America's industry and the middle-America towns that relied on those jobs to buy homes, send their kids to school and provide for a safe retirement. This is what Bernie Sanders ran on in 2016 until the DNC pushed him aside. Call it transactional if you want but this appointment demonstrates that Trump aims to help American workers.