6 Things to Know About Andrew Puzder, Trump's Expected Pick for Labor Secretary

By Michael Sebastian

Dec 08, 2016

Donald Trump is expected to choose fast-food executive Andrew Puzder to lead the Labor Department. As labor secretary, Puzder, 66, would enforce and propose laws involving unions and the workplace, including safety conditions, hours and wages, and unemployment benefits. He has also said that serving in Trump's Cabinet would be "the most fun you could have with your clothes on."

"Andy Puzder has created and boosted the careers of thousands of Americans, and his extensive record fighting for workers makes him the ideal candidate to lead the Department of Labor," Trump said in a statement.

Here’s what you need to know about Puzder.

HE’S SERVED AS CEO OF CKE RESTAURANT HOLDINGS SINCE 2000.

CKE Restaurant Holdings is the parent company that owns fast-food chains Carl’s Jr. and Hardees. The company employs about 75,000 people in the U.S., with $4.3 billion in sales, according to The Wall Street Journal.

HE OPPOSES A SUBSTANTIAL HIKE TO THE MINIMUM WAGE.

Democrats have proposed raising the federal minimum wage to as high as $15 an hour, but Puzder, the Journal reported, opposes any increase above $9 an hour. The federal minimum wage is currently $7.25 an hour, but 29 states have established higher rates for their workers.

He’s not only against a hike in the minimum wage, the American Prospect pointed out, but also opposes an Obama administration law that would expand access to overtime pay.

Puzder, who’s also a vocal opponent of the Affordable Care Act, is “the worst appointment imaginable” for low-income workers and labor advocates, the American Prospect said.

HE’S A BIG FAN OF COMMERCIALS FEATURING WOMEN IN BIKINIS.

Commercials for Carl’s Jr. feature scantily clad women, which has drawn criticism, the New York Times pointed out, from women’s groups and religious activists. The aim of these ads, according to Entrepreneur magazine, is to attract “hungry young guys.” And it’s an approach that Puzder enthusiastically endorses.

"If you don't complain, I go to the head of marketing and say, 'What's wrong with our ads?'" He told Entrepreneur in 2015. "Those complaints aren't necessarily bad for us. What you look at is, you look at sales. And, our sales go up."

HE DRAFTED A LANDMARK LAW THAT RESTRICTED ABORTION ACCESS.

Puzder was an attorney in St. Louis in the '80s and '90s, when he helped draft a law that placed strict restrictions on abortion access in Missouri, according to the biography on his blog. The law banned the use of public employees and public facilities in performing abortions. The executive director of an abortion clinic in St. Louis sued to overturn the law, according to the New York Times. The suit ultimately went to the Supreme Court, which upheld the restrictions, marking it the first time the court allowed states to enact restrictions on abortion, the Times reported.

HE CO-FOUNDED AN ORGANIZATION WITH THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF AN ABORTION CLINIC.

Puzder later teamed up with the very man who sued to overturn the law he wrote. Together, Puzder and B. J. Isaacson-Jones, then executive director of Reproductive Health Services, established the Common Ground Network. The organization, which is now nationwide, seeks to find ways for pro-choice and pro-life advocates to work together, including promoting adoption and limiting unwanted teen pregnancies, according to the Chicago Tribune.

HE HAS A LARGE FAMILY.

Puzder lives in Franklin, Tennessee, with his wife Dee, according to the bio on his blog. They have six children and six grandchildren.