Labor Secretary Chavez-DeRemer Fights for Worker Protections and Union Rights

0:00Nicole hosts Easter every year. That's why she shops at BJ's wholesale club, stocking up on spiral ham, baked goods, fresh flowers, candy, and five dozen eggs. I've got a lot of baskets to fill. Nicole's not worried because she knows she can save big and get it all done in one trip. It's like when in the Easter egg hunt? When you save everyone wins. Get a $15 digital coupon when you spend $150 in one transaction now through April 5th. Visit BJ's dot com slash Easter coupon for details. BJ's your Easter destination. Finding a hoodie that lasts through the season can be tough. The American giant classic full zip hoodie is made to last a lifetime. So you can count on it to bring you comfort and warmth year after year. The iconic classic full zip hoodie is the jacket that started it all for American giant. Custom heavyweight fleece and side panels for mobility make it the best hoodie ever. And a double-lined hood and reinforced elbow patches means this hoodie will last. Born from a commitment to support the communities that create its products, every American giant piece is made in America and designed to last. No exceptions.

1:05The result is durable clothing like the premium Slub Crew T, no BS high-rise pant, and slim rough neck pant that become part of your life. Snag the hoodie that will bring you comfort for life. The American giant classic full zip and save 20% off your first order at American-giant dot com when you use code staple 20 at checkout. That's American-giant dot com code staple 20. Hey everyone, I'm Mortimer and welcome back to the Secretary of Labor podcast. Today we're avian to the turbulent world of Lori Chavez-Deremer, our current US Secretary of Labor and the chaos swirling around her department. Let's start with the headline stuff. According to Salon, Chavez-Deremer, a one-term Oregon Republican congresswoman, has been engulfed in scandal since January. She's faced allegations of a romantic engagement with a security staffer which she's denied. More troubling, her husband, Sean Deremer, has been accused of sexual assault by two women at the department and banned from its buildings. His attorney has also denied those

2:09allegations. But here's where it gets really interesting. While all this scandal dominates the news cycle, something quieter and arguably more significant is happening behind the scenes at the National Labor Relations Board. According to reporting from Salon, the NLRB has implemented new policies that require workers bringing cases to do much of the investigative work themselves, work that was previously handled by board investigators. A Boston trader Joe's worker had their wrongful termination case dismissed under this new standard. The troubling part, many workers without legal representation might just accept these dismissals as final, according to labor attorney, Seth Goldstein. He worries about how many cases are being quietly closed, without workers even realizing they could fight back. The deeper problem, according to analysis from the Center for American Progress, is that NLRB overseen union elections, foul by 30% year over year during Trump's first term. That's significant. Why is this happening?

3:10Well, Salon reports the agency has faced decreasing staffing levels and increasing caseloads. The average time to schedule a hearing has ballooned from 215 days in fiscal year 2022 to 495 days in 2025. Back in 2010, it was only 135 days. The Labor Department's own deputy secretary Keith Sonderling recently highlighted progress in apprenticeships and veteran support. But critics argue the administration's policies are systematically weakening worker protections and the right to organize. So while the headlines focus on scandal at the top, the real story might be the quiet dismantling of worker advocacy infrastructure. That's what's happening in America's labor landscape right now. Thanks for listening to the Secretary of Labor podcast. Please subscribe. This has been a quiet police production. For more info, check out quietplease.ai. Nicole hosts Easter every year. That's why she shops at BJ's wholesale club,

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