A US Labor Department inspector general’s report has found that former secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer repeatedly breached departmental policy, tolerated harassment, used public money for personal travel and pursued an inappropriate relationship with a member of her security detail.
The 40-page report, released on Thursday, describes a “toxic, intimidating and humiliating” workplace at the top of the department, based on evidence from more than three dozen witnesses.
Chavez-DeRemer, 58, resigned in April after roughly a year in office as allegations of misconduct and a series of investigations intensified. She did not immediately respond to a request for comment and has previously denied wrongdoing through her representatives.
Labor Department report details workplace misconduct claims
The investigation began after a whistleblower raised allegations concerning the secretary and senior aides in her office. Claims examined by the watchdog included the misuse of government travel, drinking during working hours, bullying of junior female employees and a relationship with a senior member of her protective detail.
Investigators said Chavez-DeRemer’s office had created official-looking engagements during trips that also included visits to places where she had friends or relatives. Her calendar sometimes contained only one or two meetings, leaving much of the day free.
Some journeys involved less than two hours of official business spread across two days, the report said. Department funds were also used for expenses including hotel rooms and sports utility vehicle hire, while personal activities were incorporated into official travel.
Chavez-DeRemer directed staff to carry out domestic tasks, including organising her wardrobe, buying picture frames, holiday decorations, gifts and wine, and translating conversations with Spanish-speaking workers at her home, according to the findings.
The watchdog also said she accepted gifts without reporting them through the required ethics procedures. They included an alligator-hide wallet received in Louisiana and tickets to a rodeo.
The secretary’s tenure was said to have taken an unorthodox turn from the beginning. At a birthday gathering held at the department’s Perkins Building and presented as a swearing-in party, political staff drank wine and mingled. The report said Chavez-DeRemer and senior aides regularly drank during office hours and pressured or mocked employees who declined to join them.
Relationship with security agent examined
Witnesses told investigators that Chavez-DeRemer’s personal relationship with a senior security agent contributed to a tense and hostile atmosphere and breached security protocols. The agent, who was not named, resigned in March.
During a private trip to Oregon, the report said, Chavez-DeRemer asked her driver to take her and the agent to a strip club. She also instructed the driver to enter the venue and drop cash from her purse on a partly undressed performer.
When the driver hesitated, the agent told him to follow the secretary’s instructions and later warned him not to discuss what had happened. The inspector general’s team examined hotel key-card records and carried out surveillance of the department, finding activity consistent with Chavez-DeRemer and the agent spending evenings together.
The report did not include details of separate allegations concerning inappropriate behaviour by members of Chavez-DeRemer’s family. Her husband, Shawn DeRemer, was barred from the department’s Washington headquarters after at least two female employees accused him of unwanted sexual advances.
One woman reported the matter to Washington’s Metropolitan Police Department. Prosecutors later declined to pursue a criminal case, and the police investigation was closed.
Chavez-DeRemer’s departure closes turbulent chapter
The inspector general, Anthony D’Esposito, took office in January and was confronted almost immediately with complaints about the secretary, her chief of staff and deputy chief of staff. Both senior aides were placed on administrative leave after the allegations became public and later left their posts as the inquiry widened.
Chavez-DeRemer was a former Republican member of Congress from Oregon who had support from organised labour, partly because her father was a Teamster. She entered the House in 2022 but lost her re-election bid in November 2024 before President Donald Trump selected her as labour secretary.
While in office, she promoted a nationwide “America at Work” tour. The Labor Department said in March that she had completed visits to all 50 states, presenting the initiative as a listening exercise focused on workers, employers and training providers.
Her departure left Keith Sonderling, the department’s deputy secretary, as acting secretary while he awaited Senate confirmation. Chavez-DeRemer has since launched a political action committee aimed at helping elect Republicans who support organised labour.
