Trump Removes BLS Head After Poor Employment Numbers, Cites Biden-Era Appointee

The United States President Donald Trump on Friday removed Erika McEntarfer, the director of the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), after a dismal jobs report showed significant slowdowns in hiring for July and downward revisions for May and June.

Trump’s Claim on his Truth Social

On his Truth Social, Trump claimed that, without evidence that the jobs data was manipulated for political reasons, targeting McEntarfer, a Biden-era appointee. “She will be replaced with someone much more competent and qualified,” he wrote, later alleging the figures were “RIGGED” to harm Republicans and his presidency.

Employment Data

The employment report of Friday revealed that only 73,000 jobs were added in July, and that job gains in May and June were revised down by a combined 258,000. The data points to a broader economic slowdown and rising inflation, trends economists say could be linked in part to the ongoing tariff policies under Trump’s administration.

The move to dismiss McEntarfer drew swift condemnation from economists and former BLS officials. “Firing the Commissioner … when the BLS revises jobs numbers down (as it routinely does) threatens to destroy trust in core American institutions,” said economist Arin Dube of the University of Massachusetts-Amherst on X.

Following Trump’s announcement, Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer confirmed that McEntarfer had been removed and that Deputy Commissioner William Wiatrowski would serve as acting head of the agency. She echoed Trump’s concerns, stating her support for replacing the leadership to “ensure the American People can trust the important and influential data coming from BLS.”

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