Trump nominates acting head Keith Sonderling as Labor secretary

Skip to content

President Trump on Monday nominated acting Labor Secretary Keith Sonderling to the full-time post.

“It is my Great Honor to announce that I am nominating Keith E. Sonderling, the outstanding Acting United States Secretary of Labor, to be permanent,” the president wrote on Truth Social.

Sonderling said he was “deeply grateful” for Trump nominating him.

“Serving in both of President Trump’s Administrations has been the greatest honor of my life,” he wrote on social platform X. “If confirmed by the Senate, I look forward to continuing that service as Secretary of Labor and advancing the President’s agenda on behalf of America’s workers, families, unions, and job creators.”

Sonderling has served as acting Labor secretary since April 20, after former Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer resigned amid investigations into alleged misconduct by her and her husband.

Prior to Chavez-DeRemer’s departure, Sonderling was her deputy for more than a year. During Trump’s first term in office, he ascended to acting administrator of the Labor Department’s Wage and Hour Division.

A lawyer, Sonderling was also was a member of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission during the first Trump and Biden administrations. Last week, he became the acting director of the U.S. Office of Government Ethics, an independent agency in charge of ensuring executive branch officials avoid conflicts of interest.

“Throughout his career, Keith has proven his dedication to delivering strong results for the Hardworking People of our Country, and I know he will do an incredible job in his new role,” Trump added in his post.

Before he can assume the full-time role, Sonderling will face questioning from the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee. If the GOP-controlled committee advances his nomination, Sonderling will face a full Senate vote.

Last year, the HELP panel advanced Chavez-DeRemer’s nomination 14-9, with Republican Sen. Rand Paul (Ky.) voting against her and three Democrats voting in favor. The Senate later confirmed her via a 67-32 vote.

Earlier this year, the administration requested $9.9 billion from Congress for the Labor Department’s budget in fiscal 2027, a 25.9-percent decrease from the 2026 enacted level.

Nearly half of the proposed cuts to the department’s budget came via the elimination of the Job Corps program — a no-cost education and vocational training program for individuals from ages 16 to 24.

In May, Sonderling said the administration’s proposed budget for his department is “responsible and well-reasoned.”

“The Administration’s proposal focuses the Department on its highest priority functions and disinvests in programs that are wasteful, duplicative, unproven, non-essential, or ineffective,” he told a Senate Appropriations subcommittee.

Sonderling’s nomination comes as the unemployment rate has hovered between 4.1 and 4.5 percent throughout Trump’s second term in office, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Unemployment, in fact, has not topped 5 percent since August 2021, the BLS notes.

Inflation, though, is outpacing wage growth. Last month, the consumer price index rose by 4.2 percent, 0.8 points ahead of the annual wage growth of 3.4 percent, according to data calculated by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis (FRED).

In April, annual inflation hit 3.8 percent and annual wage growth was 3.6 percent. In recent months, inflation has increased to its highest level in three years, amid energy price hikes due to the Iran war.

This article was updated at 8:01 p.m. EDT.

Tags

Donald Trump

Joe Biden

Lori Chavez-DeRemer

Rand Paul

Copyright 2026 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.