KRA is pleased to celebrate Women’s History Month by honoring several incredible women who have served our nation as DOL Secretary, the most recent of whom is Lori . Yesterday, the U.S. Senate voted 67-32 to confirm Chavez-DeRemer, who was sworn in today, to lead the DOL.
Chavez-DeRemer is a former Mayor of Happy Valley, OR (2011 – 2019) and former member of the House of Representatives for Oregon’s 5th District (2023 – 2025) where she served on the House Education and Workforce Committee and voted for passage of the A Stronger Workforce for America legislation, the House WIOA reauthorization proposal. She was also a member of the House Agriculture Committee, House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, Republican Main Street Partnership, Problem Solvers Caucus, Climate Solutions Caucus, and the Congressional Hispanic Caucus.
In a March 10 Policy Alert, the National Association of Workforce Boards (NAWB), of which KRA is an active member, published an article congratulating Secretary Chavez-DeRemer, stating the association “…looks forward to working with her to support the public workforce system in their vital work to serve businesses and jobseekers alike,” said NAWB President and CEO Brad Turner-Little. “Together, we will work to ensure that local workforce boards have both the resources and the flexibility to meet the unique needs of their communities.”
Four other women share the honor of having served as DOL Secretary, and we thank them for their service:
• Frances Perkins (1933-1945) was the first DOL Secretary and the first woman to serve in the U.S. Cabinet, dealing with critical labor issues during WW II, when skilled labor was vital to the economy and women were moving into jobs formerly held by men.
• Alexis Herman (1997-2001), the first African-American to hold the position, also served as Director of the Women’s Bureau (1977 – 1981). The DOL Hall of Secretaries website states, “Herman led the Department to focus its work on a prepared workforce, a secure workforce and a quality workforce.”
• Elaine Chao (2001-2009) was the first Asian Pacific-American woman to hold the position and to serve in the U.S. Cabinet. She served also as the Secretary of Transportation (2017 – 2021).
• Hilda Solis (2009 – 2013) was the first Hispanic-American to hold the position and to serve in the U.S. Cabinet, focusing much of her tenure on workplace-safety issues and strengthening compliance with wage-and-hour labor laws.
Please join us in celebrating these remarkable women and their contributions to our nation’s workforce. Let’s continue to support and uplift women in leadership roles across all sectors.