US Labor Secretary Talks May Jobs Report, Immigration
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Well, we'd like to bring in the Labor Secretary now, Lori Chavez de Rima. Thank you so much, Secretary, for joining us as we are on the heels of this May report where the U.S. added 139,000 jobs, beating estimates. But I would love to start with the decline in the size of the labor force, down 626,000, largest drop since 2023. Is this because the administration has shut down immigration?

Well, thank you, Anne-Marie, for having me. We are excited, 139,000 new jobs, and that President Trump, with his dedication and his leadership, really has beat expectations for the third month in a row. Our goal is to grow this economy and grow this workforce. And the president has done a wonderful job in...

accessing companies to invest in the workforce and we're seeing it across the country. So while jobs are continuing to grow and we might see a decrease at the federal level, which is another great thing that we've seen 22,000 jobs leave the federal public workforce and we're seeing it at the local level. So there's a lot to look forward to. There's a lot that we're excited about and we couldn't be more excited for this economy in this third month in a row of a growing jobs report.

What do you think is behind the drop in the size of the labor force? Well, what we want is to grow that labor force. We're seeing increases in construction jobs. We're seeing increases in transportation and healthcare. While the manufacturing sector is holding steady, what we're excited about is the focus that the President has on the skilled workforce. Again, my part of this equation is to grow that workforce. And as we transition through this process of onshoring and

The president has done a wonderful job in negotiating some of these tariff talks. Tens of trillions of dollars are being invested. This workforce is going to continue to grow. The unemployment rate remains steady. A lot of economists will point to the fact that potentially it's for the wrong reasons, not because jobs are plentiful, but because workers are dropping out. Are you concerned that too many workers are dropping out, especially in some of these areas that are mostly filled with immigrants?

Well, certainly what we have seen in the last few months is that native-born Americans are the ones where the job growth is happening. That's exciting for the American people. We want to make sure that we're protecting the American worker first, and we want that labor participation rate to go up. I will tell you, unemployment is holding steady. That is a good thing for the American economy. We'll continue to focus on that.

As the president's executive order with one million apprentices across the nation and also through an executive order that we're going to have the skilled workforce with AI, I'm telling you and I'm confident that that workforce is going to continue to grow and we're going to see these numbers continue to climb and unemployment rate continue to drop.

Do you foresee wage pressures potentially reemerging to fill jobs if there are fewer immigrants coming to the United States, which is a policy of this administration?

Well, I can tell you right now that wage growth, hourly wage growth is up almost 4%. That's great for the American people. More money in their pockets. And with this one big beautiful bill that the president is focused on, we are going to see no tax on tips, no tax on overtime. Do you know what that does for a family of four who possibly can put more money in their pocket? I can tell you this.

One big beautiful bill equals one big beautiful workforce. That's what I'm focused on and I'm going to continue to work hard, get around this country and deliver for the American people what the president promised them that he would do. I guess my question though is if we have wage pressures re-emerging, is there potentially a cycle where we can see higher inflation makes it harder for things like the Federal Reserve to step in and potentially cut interest rates?

Well, certainly the president, again, is laser focused on growing the workforce. We're seeing unemployment hold steady. It's been holding steady for, you know, really running between 4.0 and 4.2 percent over the last year. That's exciting for the American people. We are not seeing unemployment tick up. We're seeing hourly

wage growth go up. That's again good for them. I'll be working with the president on this to make sure that we can continue to hold steady and grow this economy. The president posted on social media that America is, quote, hot. And he said six months ago it was ice cold. But six months ago, I'm looking at the nonfarm payroll numbers from six months ago, we were at 323,000.

and an unemployment rate even lower than we are today of 4.1%. That is what arguably many people would call a hot labor market. What is the president talking about when he says we weren't hot?

Well, under the last administration, we saw, for instance, manufacturing jobs take a tank over the last 20 years. That is what the president is bringing back. Hardworking, blue-collar Americans where he's bringing labor and business together to grow the economy for the everyday average American. That's where the change in the focus has been. And so the labor market is growing steady, and he's correct. It is hot.

And it is better than what we had in the past administration, 100%. But manufacturing payroll numbers dropped 8,000 for the month of May.

But compared to the Biden administration, they've grown. They have continued to hold steady. That is the difference when he stays laser focused on the American people and the American worker. I'm telling you, as I go around this country and I visit the excitement in the labor force and in the participation rate, we're seeing that increase. Students, young people, they're excited to get back into the labor market. So it's going to take some time.

But I can tell you, if we stay focused on the American people, I don't make a decision at the Department of Labor unless I know it's going to benefit the American worker first. You mentioned federal workers and those employment numbers dropping off. When you think about Doge working inside the labor force, has it changed given the fact that Elon Musk has now left the administration and also given the fact that he's having this pretty massive breakup with the president of the United States on social media?

Well, the focus of Doge was government efficiency. Again, that's what the president promised the American people, that he was going to save them their hard-earned tax dollars. Again, the focus is to make sure that we're being efficient with their tax dollars and still growing the economy. Listen, we can have distractions all day long.

This jobs report of 139,000 new jobs, I think is the primary focus today because that is what matters to the everyday workers who get up every morning and understand that the president has their best interests at heart. So even with Elon Musk not at the helm and also having this implosion with President Trump, do you still see Doge working even inside the Labor Department?

Well, government efficiency I think is key and I think for every secretary of every agency, we're going to continue to doge our own agencies because again, for the American people, they want to understand that when we have their hard-earned tax dollars, that we're spending it wisely and we're saving them dollars where there's inefficiencies. And I'll continue to focus on doging my own agency to make sure that we're saving the American tax dollars. Well, we look forward to hearing about those numbers, Secretary.

Finally, the president has taken to social media again this morning and he's saying too late. The Fed is a disaster. He's looking at what Jay Powell is doing, comparing it to Europe, which has already cut interest rates a number of times. And he says despite them, though, our country is still doing great. Why does the Federal Reserve need to be cutting interest rates when you're telling us that this is a really fantastic and healthy labor market?

Well, that's the focus, right? And sometimes you've got to have the stool stand on several different legs. The president does a wonderful job at negotiations. The president will have a conversation with the treasury secretary and he will determine when it's time to put the pressure on to lower those interest rates to make sure that we're still adding to the American economy and protecting the American worker. Thanks so much for joining us. Labor Secretary Lori Chavez de Rima. Are you still quoting 30-year-old movies? Have you said cool beans in the past 90 days?

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