Trump looks to close 105-year-old department that supports women workers despite insinuating it would stay
When pressed with questions about the Department of Government Efficiency cutting grants administered by the Women's Bureau at a House Appropriations Committee meeting on May 15, Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer responded by emphasizing its history.
'Statutorily, the Women's Bureau is in statute,' Chavez-DeRemer said in response to Representative Rosa DeLauro's concerns.
While Chavez-DeRemer's comment stopped short of a promise, she did not elaborate on the future of Women's Bureau, but insinuated the 105-year-old department was here to stay.
Yet the Department of Labor's 2026 fiscal year budget in brief anticipates eliminating the Women's Bureau, calling it a 'relic of the past' and 'an ineffective policy.'
'The Department will work with Congress to craft a repeal package of WB's organic statutes, including the Women in Apprenticeship in Non-Traditional Occupations grant authorization. Apprenticeship work will be handled by the Employment and Training Administration,' the Bureau of Labor wrote.
The Independent has asked the Department of Labor and the White House for comment.
The elimination of the bureau, by giving it no funding in 2026, is the latest move by the Trump administration to override Congress's authority and get rid of previously appropriated funds for what it believes is unnecessary or does not align with the president's policies.
During his presidential campaign, Trump promised to be women's 'protector' and insisted they would be 'happy, healthy, confident and free' under his administration.
However, the Trump administration believes the Women's Bureau 'has struggled to find a role' in advancing the interests of women in the workforce, according to the budget brief.
'The Bureau works on a wide range of issues and its work is not always closely coordinated with, or informed by, the agencies that actually have the resources to address the issues at hand,' the Department wrote in its FY 2026 budget in brief.
Established by Congress in 1920, the Women's Bureau is the only federal agency mandated to represent the needs of wage-earning women.
It conducts research and policy analysis to advocate for policies that improve working conditions and increase profitable opportunities for women in the workforce. That includes getting more women to high-paying jobs, expanding access to paid leave and affordable child care, eliminating pay inequality, as well as harassment in the workplace.
Part of its role includes grant-making and managing the Women in Apprenticeship and Nontraditional Occupations grant program.
The Women's Bureau also has the authority to investigate and report on matters about the welfare of women in industry to the Department of Labor.
Nine current or former Department of Labor staffers told Mother Jones they believe shuttering the Women's Bureau aligns with the administration's desire to have women stop working and stay home to raise children.
'It really feels like a specific [effort] to get women out of the workplace,' Gayle Goldin, the former deputy director of the Women's Bureau under the Biden administration, told Mother Jones. 'We really still need the Women's Bureau, because we need to be able to identify what the problems are, see where the barriers are for women in the workplace, and ensure that women have full capacity to enter the workplace in whatever job they want.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
7 minutes ago
- The Independent
New FEMA grants set to hand out $600M to states so they can build migrant detention facilities
The Federal Emergency Management Agency is planning to give out more than $608 million in grants to states and local jurisdictions to build more immigration detention facilities, as the Trump administration seeks to expand U.S. detention capacity and quickly deport millions of people. 'This will relieve overcrowding in the U.S. Custom and Border Protection's short-term holding facilities, further the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's immigration enforcement plans and complement U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement operational priorities,' the agency wrote in a notice detailing the new Detention Support Grant Program. The funding will support the creation of more facilities like Florida's ' Alligator Alcatraz ' detention center, a converted swamp airstrip where detainees say they have faced inhumane conditions, abuse, and highly restricted access to legal counsel. The facility has faced legal challenges from environmental, tribal, and civil rights groups. Florida has said it will seek federal reimbursement for the facility, which has already cost the state $245 million in contracts to build and operate. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem has said the federal government will seek to reimburse Florida through FEMA's $650 million shelter and services program — money outside the agency's disaster budget relief set aside by Congress under Joe Biden's administration to cover the cost of housing migrants. The government has also ramped up spending on federal facilities, awarding a $1.26 billion contract to build a sprawling tent facility at an Army base in Texas that will be the largest immigrant detention center in the country. The Trump administration's One Big, Beautiful Bill spending package awards ICE an additional $45 billion for detaining migrants, a virtually unprecedented funding increase. The detention spending spree comes as the Trump administration has sought to reduce FEMA's federal footprint. In April, FEMA announced it was ending the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities grant program focused on preventing natural disasters, prompting a lawsuit from Democrat-led states. The Trump administration has also rejected 16 of the 18 applications for FEMA's 'hazard mitigation' funds after flooding across the country this year, according to an analysis from The Hill. However, this week, the White House announced four states that had recently been hit with disasters would get emergency funding: Indiana, which experienced deadly tornadoes in March; Michigan, which experienced ice storms in March; Kentucky, which experienced flooding and tornadoes in April and May; and West Virginia, which experienced flooding and tornadoes in June. The administration said earlier in the year it would eliminate FEMA entirely, moving disaster response to the states, but has since backtracked, saying it seeks a rebranding at the agency rather than a total shutdown.
The Independent
37 minutes ago
- The Independent
‘Let them destroy each other': Democrats planning Epstein-focused town halls in GOP districts
Democrats are once again planning a blitz of town hall meetings in Republican-led communities, though this time they are armed with a new and polarizing topic: Jeffrey Epstein. The issue of the so-called 'Epstein files' — including the details of high-profile people associated with the disgraced financier and sex offender — continues to divide the GOP, with some calling for further transparency and others, including the president himself, urging people to move on. 'Let them destroy each other. If we have to throw a log on the fire, we'll do it,' one House Democratic aide told The Hill. Further fuel for such fires followed a report from The Wall Street Journal that revealed the alleged existence of a 'bawdy' 50th birthday card from Trump to Epstein. The president has denied the validity of the letter and has filed a $10 billion defamation lawsuit against right-wing media mogul Rupert Murdoch, WSJ 's parent company Dow Jones and the two journalists whose bylines appear on the story. During the town halls, Democrats will reportedly attempt to marry the Epstein fallout with their previous attack lines, including broken promises by Trump and the GOP to lower costs for working families. Tax cuts and an apparent refusal to share information of those allegedly associated with Epstein demonstrate the GOP's protections for the super wealthy, Democratic officials argue. 'Everything that House Republicans have done, everything this administration has done since Donald Trump took office, is in defense of the elites,' Democratic whip Katherine Clark told The Hill. The outlet points to scheduled visits to Republican towns by Democrats in coming weeks. On July 31, Democratic Rep. Mark Pocan is scheduled to speak in Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin — the hometown of his GOP counterpart Derrick Van Orden. Florida Democrat Maxwell Frost has also planned a series of meetings, including a July 26 town hall in Dayton, Ohio, with Senator Chris Murphy, and another event with Senator Elizabeth Warren in Nebraska at the end of August. New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who launched a series of 'fighting oligarchy' rallies with Senator Bernie Sanders earlier this year, is also reportedly eyeing additional travel to Republican hotbeds while Congress is on its summer recess. The plans appear to already be rattling some Republicans. 'Democrats are still pretty determined to hijack our town halls and try to prevent us from having this conversation with our constituents, so I would encourage them to use other means,' National Republican Congressional Committee chair Richard Hudson told The Hill. Meanwhile, the Epstein saga shows no signs of slowing down after the financier's ex-girlfriend, British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell, met with Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche twice last week. During the in-depth interviews Maxwell answered questions about '100 different people,' her lawyer said. According to The New York Times, Maxwell has made it clear that in exchange for information she wants a reduction of her 20-year sentence or a pardon. When asked by reporters about a potential pardon for her, Trump replied: 'I'm allowed to do it, but it's something I haven't thought about.'
Reuters
38 minutes ago
- Reuters
Inter Miami acquire M Rodrigo De Paul from Atletico
July 26 - Inter Miami acquired Argentine midfielder Rodrigo De Paul from LaLiga powerhouse Atletico Madrid. The MLS club announced the move late Friday, with De Paul arriving on loan through 2025 with a purchase option that could make the deal permanent through 2029. De Paul, 31, will not occupy a designated player spot on the roster as he reunites with fellow 2022 FIFA World Cup champion Lionel Messi. "Assembling a team that inspires our fans to dream continues to be one of our primary aspirations, so we're thrilled to sign a player of Rodrigo's caliber. He is a winner who has conquered the world stage; his ambitions match ours at Inter Miami, and we are hungry to achieve these goals together," Inter Miami CF managing owner Jorge Mas said. "Several of the best players in global futbol have already chosen Inter Miami as their home, and Rodrigo joining our roster is another landmark as we continue on this journey to change the trajectory of the sport in this country and make our fans proud." De Paul has accumulated 57 goals and 74 assists in nearly 500 professional matches with Argentina's Racing Club (2012-14), Italy's Udinese (2016-21) and Spain's Valencia (2014-16) and Atletico (2021-25). "Rodrigo is a player I've admired for many years. As a leader he has brought so much to the teams he has played for -- especially with his national team Argentina," Inter Miami co-owner David Beckham said. "He brings experience, passion and quality to our team and to our city. I'm excited to welcome another World Cup-winning player not just to Inter Miami, but also to MLS." Internationally, he has been capped 78 times by Argentina. In addition to the World Cup, he helped the team win Copa America championships in 2021 and 2024. De Paul became known for his role as an enforcer for Messi. "What brings me to Inter Miami is the desire to compete, win titles, to write the pages in the club's history," De Paul said. "It's a club that is shaping up to be great, to have a long history, so that many people follow this incredible team." --Field Level Media
