WASHINGTON — American workers have their champion officially in place. On Friday afternoon, October 9, 2026, Keith Sonderling was sworn in as the 31st Secretary of Labor of the United States in the Oval Office, with President Donald J. Trump on hand and applauding from behind the Resolute Desk. “JUST NOW: Keith Sonderling is officially sworn in as the 31st United States Secretary of Labor!” the White House announced.
The Senate confirmed Sonderling on September 30 by a vote of 47 to 41, with every Republican present voting yes. He had already been running the department as acting secretary since late April, after serving as deputy secretary, so he takes the oath with a full agenda already moving. When the President nominated him in June, he said Sonderling had “proven his dedication to delivering strong results for the Hardworking People of our Country.”
Sonderling’s message to employers who game the system is blunt. “American Workers are the greatest in the world and companies are put on notice,” he wrote Friday morning. “I’m working closely with our great @USLaborIG to ensure they have the opportunities that have been stolen from them through fraud for decades. We have a mandate under @POTUS and through the leadership of @VP on the @WHFraudTF, we’re rooting out fraud and abuse to protect the American Worker.”
That mandate is already in action. A day before his swearing-in, Sonderling stood with Vice President JD Vance, Stephen Miller, Todd Blanche, Labor Inspector General Anthony D’Esposito and FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson to announce new actions against H-1B and J-1 visa fraud. “Abuse H-1B or J-1 visas, sell out American workers, or open doors to foreign adversaries, we’re coming,” the Labor Department’s inspector general warned.
Under President Trump, the Labor Department works for the American worker, not for cheap-labor schemes. With Secretary Sonderling now sworn in, that America First mission has a permanent leader. Watch the Official White House video.
