Lori Chavez-DeRemer is resigning from her role as secretary at the Department of Labor (DOL), following months of misconduct allegations.
White House Communications Director Steven Cheung confirmed her departure on Monday. News outlet NOTUS first reported on her resignation.
“Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer will be leaving the Administration to take a position in the private sector. She has done a phenomenal job in her role by protecting American workers, enacting fair labor practices, and helping Americans gain additional skills to improve their lives,” Cheung wrote in a post on X.
Deputy Secretary of Labor Keith Sonderling will take on the new post as acting secretary, Cheung added.
Chavez-DeRemer’s exit comes just slightly over a year after she was confirmed to the role. A former Republican congresswoman from Oregon, she was nominated by President Donald Trump in November 2024 after losing reelection in her district.
In a statement on X, Chavez-DeRemer said it was “an honor and a privilege to serve in this historic Administration and work for the greatest President of my lifetime.”
In recent months, Chavez-DeRemer faced claims of committing travel fraud and engaging in inappropriate acts, like having an affair with a member of her security team and drinking on the job. Two of her top aides were also dismissed following an investigation into misconduct at the DOL.
Chavez-DeRemer is the third cabinet member to be ousted from their role in the past weeks. Trump replaced Attorney General Pam Bondi and Homeland Security Secretary Krisi Noem earlier this month, following speculation of a falling out with the president.
She is also the second Labor Department head to resign from the role under the Trump Administration. Alexander Acosta, who was labor secretary under the first Trump Administration, stepped down from his post in July 2019 after facing backlash for orchestrating a plea deal for Jeffrey Epstein as the U.S. district attorney in Southern Florida.