Editorial: Putting Labor Back in Labor Day
By • August 13, 2025 0 246
This year, Labor Day falls on Sept. 1. The first Monday in September hasn’t been the first day of the month since 2014.
Among other things, this earliest-possible timing means that the National Symphony Orchestra’s free Labor Day Concert on the West Lawn of the U.S. Capitol will take place on the last day of August — Sunday, Aug. 31 — at 8 p.m.
Fun fact: Conductor Enrico Lopez-Yañez is the son of one of the Three Mexican Tenors (they won’t be singing though).
Should we expect remarks during intermission from the U.S. secretary of labor? Who is the current U.S. secretary of labor, anyway?
Nominated by President Trump, Lori Chavez-DeRemer, formerly mayor of Happy Valley, Oregon, and a Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives, was confirmed by the Senate, voting 67-32, on March 10.
Endorsing her nomination, Sean O’Brien, general president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, stated: “As the daughter of a Teamster, Lori Chavez-DeRemer knows the importance of carrying a union card and what it means to grow up in a middle-class household.”
In February, an article in the Washington Post described Chavez-DeRemer, 57, as “a moderate Republican.” We’ll see. So far, she has been a flag waver for the Trump agenda.
Though Secretary Chavez-DeRemer oversees the Bureau of Labor Statistics, BLS Commissioner Erika McEntarfer was abruptly fired on Aug. 1 by the president, not by her.
Chavez-DeRemer’s response on X: “I support the President’s decision to replace Biden’s Commissioner and ensure the American People can trust the important and influential data coming from BLS.” (It gets worse.)
During this year’s early three-day weekend, The Georgetowner encourages everyone to take a moment to put labor back in Labor Day by thinking about the contributions of unions to the lifestyle we enjoy. And perhaps pour one out for the thousands whose federal employment was terminated (are you one of them?) or will be, pending the administration’s elimination of federal collective bargaining.
Happy Labor Day, Madam Secretary!
