It seems as if organized labor has a Labor Department secretary it can live with.

President George W. Bush selected former Deputy Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao to be Secretary of Labor. Bush announced his choice on Jan. 11, just two days after his initial selection, commentator Linda Chavez, said she was dropping her candidacy for the position. Chavez cited a flap over disclosure that she had housed an illegal immigrant, whom she had paid to perform various household chores.

Chao served in the administrations of Presidents Reagan and Bush in a variety of posts. From 1989 to 1991, she was Deputy DOT Secretary, and then director of the Peace Corps. After leaving government service, from 1992 to 1996, she was president and CEO of the United Way of America. She is the wife of Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.).

After Bush had introduced her, Chao noted that while at the United Way, she had worked with labor union leaders, including AFL-CIO's President John Sweeney. Sweeney cautiously said he wants "to meet with her to discuss the many challenges facing the new secretary and learn more about her goals."

Communications Workers President Morton Bahr, vice-chair of the United Way board when Chao cleaned up the then-troubled non-profit group, gave her the strongest support. He called her "responsive to the needs of working families," and cited "her leadership skills, integrity and ability to bring together diverse interests."