New York, Feb 20 (AP) Members of a Senate committee grilled Labor Secretary-designate Lori Chavez-DeRemer on Wednesday about her past support of pro-union legislation, her position on raising the federal minimum wage and her willingness to disagree with President Donald Trump.

Democrats sought assurances during the nominee's confirmation hearing that Chavez-DeRemer would protect private data held by the Department of Labor. Republican members of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions asked if she still backed a bill that would have made it easier for workers to unionise.

Union leaders have described Chavez-DeRemer, a former Republican member of Congress from Oregon and former mayor of a small city on the edge of liberal-leaning Portland, as a friend of organised labour. But workers' rights advocates question if she would be able to uphold that reputation in an administration that has fired thousands of federal employees.

"We are moving toward an authoritarian society where one person has enormous power. Will you have the courage to say, 'Mr President, that's unconstitutional, that's wrong?'" Vermont independent Bernie Sanders asked in his opening remarks.

The tension between the relatively pro-union record from her one term as a congresswoman and the current White House priorities had Chavez-DeRemer walking a fine line during the hearing, sometimes repeating answers or deflecting by saying she's not a lawyer and no longer serves as a House lawmaker. Appealing to both sides, she said she recognised the USD 7.25 an hour minimum wage hasn't been raised since 2009, but added, "What we don't want to do is shock the economy." Sen Bill Cassidy, a Republican from Louisiana who chairs the committee, said the Trump administration had an opportunity to enact a pro-American agenda. He said business owners were concerned about Chavez-DeRemer's past support in Congress of the Protecting the Right to Organize Act.

During her opening statement, Chavez-DeRemer described the proposed law as "imperfect". When Cassidy asked her if she still supported it, she declined to give a yes or no answer.

"I do not believe the secretary of labour should write the laws. It would be up to Congress to write the law," she said.

She later said she supports states' "right to work" laws, which allow employees to refuse to join a union in their workplace. A provision of the PRO Act sought to overturn such laws.

Sanders, the committee's ranking member, asked Chavez-DeRemer if she would be a rubber stamp for the administration or stand with workers.

"If confirmed, my job will be to implement President Trump's policy vision," Chavez-DeRemer said.

Some political observers surmised that Trump picked Chavez-DeRemer to be his labour secretary as a way to appeal to voters who are members of or affiliated with labour organisations.

If confirmed, Chavez-DeRemer would be in charge of the Department of Labor's nearly 16,000 full-time employees and a proposed budget of USD 13.9 billion in fiscal year 2025. She would set priorities that impact workers' wages, ability to unionise, and health and safety, as well as employers' rights to fire employees.

But it's unclear how much power she would be able to wield as Trump's Cabinet moves to slash US government spending and the size of the federal workforce.

His administration last week started laying off nearly all probationary employees who had not yet gained civil service protection. Billionaire Elon Musk, who leads Trump's Department of Government Efficiency, has called for getting rid of entire agencies.

"It's quite possible that no matter what the secretary of labour stands for, the billionaire embedded in the Trump administration, who is so keen on destroying the institutions, will be interested in gutting the Department of Labor," said Adam Shah, director of national policy at Jobs with Justice, a nonprofit organisation that promotes workers' rights.

In January, Trump fired two of three Democratic commissioners serving on the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, a federal agency that enforces civil rights in the workplace.

Senators also sought assurance that Chavez-DeRemer would protect sensitive data. Sen Chris Murphy, D-Connecticut, asked if she would deny Musk or his representatives access to information about competitors or labour violations at the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Musk's companies are the subject of several OSHA investigations.

Chavez-DeRemer said the decision belonged to Trump.

The answer did not satisfy Murphy.

"You have the ability to disagree with the president. You certainly serve at his pleasure, but that doesn't mean that you have to take actions that you believe to be unethical," Murphy said. "If the president asks you to give access to information that benefits a friend of his who has pending investigations, you wouldn't say no?" "I would certainly consult with the Department of Labor solicitors. I would certainly consult with the White House and their attorneys. But until I am confirmed and in the Labor Department, I would not be able to say, specific to this, without having the full picture," Chavez-DeRemer said.

During her committee testimony on Wednesday, Chavez-DeRemer said Trump had carried off the "single greatest political achievement of all time" by attracting votes from working-class Americans, many of whom traditionally voted for Democrats, and from rank-and-file union members. (AP) SZM

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Senators ask Trump's Labor Department nominee where her allegiance would lie

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