Trump Labor Chief Pick Backed Forced-Dues Bill

President’s GOP Base Supports Right to Work Principle 11:1

At midday on January 20, the millions of Americans who passionately support the Right to Work and oppose compulsory unionism breathed a sigh of relief as lifelong Big Labor Democrat politician Joe Biden’s four-year term as U.S. President finally came to an end. 

President Donald Trump established a generally pro-Right to Work record during his first term. 

But Right to Work supporters now have grounds for concern about what direction the new presidential administration may take. 

Up to now, the most disturbing signal the second Trump Administration has sent that protecting the Right to Work may be put on the back burner over the next four years is the President’s nomination of ex-Congresswoman Lori Chavez-DeRemer (R-Ore.) as U.S. labor secretary. 

Bill Cosponsored by Lori Chavez-DeRemer Would Have Fulfilled Big Labor Dreams 

National Right to Work Committee Vice President Greg Mourad commented: 

“During the 2023-24 Congress, there were only three Republican elected officials on Capitol Hill who cosponsored legislation that would end every state Right to Work law in the country. 

“It is appalling that the Trump team would select one of these three union boss appeasing Republicans — former Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer — to be secretary of labor in the new administration’s Cabinet. 

“Virtually all House Democrats (215, to be exact) — but only three House Republicans — cosponsored the so-called ‘PRO’ Act, an omnibus bill that would have accorded to private-sector union bosses virtually everything they have been seeking in recent years.” 

Teamster Boss Reportedly Had ‘Influence’ Over Chavez-DeRemer Nomination 

Mr. Mourad continued: “During her brief time in Congress, the secretary of labor nominee cosponsored legislation that would have instantly vaporized Right to Work laws in all 26 states where they are in effect, while forever preventing all state legislatures from enacting new Right to Work laws in the future. 

“The President’s base of GOP voters overwhelmingly supports the Right to Work principle by an 11-to-one margin. That makes the selection of a labor secretary with a legislative record like defeated ex-Congresswoman ChavezDeRemer’s puzzling.” 

But disturbing media reports such as a Washington Post story published the weekend before last November’s election may furnish a clue as to how it happened. 

The Post article stated that, because of the “inroads” the Teamster hierarchy had recently made with the GOP, presumably thanks to Teamster czar Sean O’Brien’s appearance at the Republican National Convention last summer, the Teamster brass would likely “wield influence” over Trump labor-policy nominations. 

The reality is that Mr. O’Brien and his cohorts refused to endorse Mr. Trump for President last year, even as internal union polling showed roughly 60% of the Teamster rank-and-file favored Mr. Trump over Democrat nominee Kamala Harris. 

Nevertheless, Mr. O’Brien is now styling himself as a Trump ally who has earned the right to help shape the President’s labor policies over the next few years. 

‘Donald Trump Didn’t Win’ By ‘Pandering to Powe-Hungry Union Bosses’ 

“Donald Trump didn’t win in 2024 by pandering to power-hungry union bosses,” said Mr. Mourad. 

“In fact, Mr. Trump won a solid majority of the working-class electorate after rejecting Mr. O’Brien’s demand that he repudiate his past support for Right to Work and pledge to veto national Right to Work legislation in exchange for a Teamster endorsement. 

“The Trump-Vance ticket won by appealing to the sense of fairness and the economic aspirations of tens of millions of Americans. 

“There would be no surer way for the Trump team to derail the President’s second term than to accept Sean O’Brien’s absurd premise that ‘pro-worker’ and ‘pro-forced unionism’ are the same thing.” 

As this Newsletter edition went to press in late January, Right to Work leaders understood well that stopping the Chavez-DeRemer nomination, which at that time was not yet scheduled for a Senate hearing, would be a steeply uphill battle. 

Because of her radically pro-Big Labor record, which includes cosponsorship of legislation granting sweeping new monopoly privileges to public-sector, as well as private-sector, union bosses, Ms. Chavez-DeRemer was practically guaranteed to get the votes of many anti-Right to Work Democrat senators. 

Trump Advisors Seem To Know Chavez-DeRemer Record Is a Problem 

And several Republicans, including at least a couple who normally vote pro-Right to Work, made it clear soon after the election that they intended to vote to confirm every single Trump Cabinet pick that came to the floor. 

But by the middle of January it was already clear that, even though Ms. Chavez-DeRemer had the wind at her back, key Trump advisors recognized that her past support of radical union-boss power grabs was a problem. 

In a January 15 profile for his magazine of Ms. Chavez-DeRemer entitled “The One Trump Pick Democrats Actually Like,” Atlantic staff writer Russell Berman reported that Trump transition spokesperson Aly Beley had told him the labor secretary nominee “no longer supports the PRO Act . . . .” 

As Mr. Berman went on to say, if this statement is correct, it represents “a major shift that will disappoint [Big Labor] Democrats” in Congress. 

Renunciation of PRO Act Support Would Only Be a First Step 

“If it is indeed the case that Ms. Chavez-DeRemer no longer supports the PRO Act, that is a first step in the right direction,” said Mr. Mourad. “But mere renunciation of her cosponsorship of this radically pro-forced unionism bill is far from sufficient.” 

As this Newsletter edition went to press, Committee legislative staff members were working with friends in the Senate to sway Ms. Chavez-DeRemer to state publicly and unequivocally that she now supports Right to Work and opposes forced union dues. 

Committee leaders were prepared to call for the defeat of the nomination on the Senate floor unless Ms. Chavez-DeRemer first went on the record as having had such a complete change of heart regarding labor policy. 

Mr. Mourad pointed out that, under Joe Biden-selected Acting Sec. Julie Su, the Labor Department has recently gone to extremes to help union bosses grab monopoly power over and extract forced dues from millions of additional workers. 

Just last year, for example, the Su Labor Department issued bureaucratically concocted regulations plainly intended to bar millions of Americans who have been working as independent contractors from continuing to do so. 

The clear aim of Ms. Su’s lawless redefinition of the term “independent contractor” was to shove as many as possible of the up to 70 million people across America who perform freelance work into payroll jobs so they can be forced into paying union dues on pain of termination. 

“It’s vitally important for Right to Work supporters that the next labor secretary be a dedicated public servant who is willing and able to undo the damage wrought by Julie Su,” said Mr. Mourad. 

“Despite being disappointed by the Chavez-DeRemer nomination, Right to Work leaders remain committed to making that happen.”

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This article was originally published in our monthly newsletter. Go here to access previous newsletter posts.

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