Labor Department investigates texts among Secretary鈥檚 family and staff
Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer and her top aides and family members routinely sent personal messages and requests to young staff members that are now under review by the department’s inspector general.
Chavez-DeRemer and her former deputy chief of staff sent texts asking employees to bring wine to them during trips for the department. Sometimes the requests came in the middle of the workday.
Chavez-DeRemer’s husband exchanged text messages with young female staff members, as did her father. Some of the young women were instructed by Chavez-DeRemer and the former deputy chief of staff to “pay attention” to the men, according to people familiar with the investigation.
The text messages have been reviewed by The New York Times.
The messages were gathered as part of a monthslong investigation into Chavez-DeRemer’s leadership of the department, which began with a complaint filed to the inspector general’s office claiming widespread misconduct. The inquiry has revealed deep frustration in the department with Chavez-DeRemer, who took office in March 2025. Staff members across the political spectrum have described her as disconnected from the work of the department.
The internal investigation is in its final stages. Four people have been forced out of their jobs, including Chavez-DeRemer’s former chief of staff and deputy chief of staff, her director of advance and a member of the secretary’s security detail with whom she was accused of having an affair. Three staff members have filed civil rights complaints against her and the department, describing a hostile work environment.
This article originally appeared in .
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