Thea Lee
Deputy Undersecretary for International Labor Affairs
Assumed office
2021
Appointed byPresident Joe Biden
Preceded bypost vacant
President of the Economic Policy Institute
In office
2021–2017
Preceded byLawrence Mishel
Succeeded byHeidi Shierholz
Personal details
CitizenshipAmerican
Children1
Alma materSmith College, BA
University of Michigan, MA
ProfessionEconomist

Thea Mei Lee is an American economist who currently serves as the Deputy Undersecretary for International Labor Affairs at the Department of Labor. She previously served as president of the Economic Policy Institute, a think tank based in Washington, D.C.

Education

Lee completed her undergraduate degree in economics at Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts where she graduated cum laude in 1980. She also holds a master's degree in economics from the University of Michigan.[1]

Career

Prior to being appointed to the Department of Labor, Lee began her career at the Economic Policy Institute as an international trade economist in the 1990s. She then worked as the chief international economist for the AFL-CIO from 1997 to 2017.

In 2017, Lee returned to the Economic Policy Institute as its president.[2]

President Joe Biden appointed Lee as the Deputy Undersecretary for International Affairs at the Department of Labor on May 10, 2021.[3][4]

At the Department of Labor, Lee has focused on global labor protections, tackling issues from unsafe working conditions to child labor. A particular focus has been enforcing labor rights cases under the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement and implementing the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act.[5]

Personal life

Lee is the descendant of a Chinese railroad worker on her father's side and Eastern European Jews escaping the Holocaust on her mother's side.[6] She lives in Washington, DC with her husband and two dogs.[7]

References

  1. ↑ "Deputy Undersecretary for International Affairs – Thea Lee". United States Department of Labor. Retrieved August 29, 2023.
  2. ↑ House, The White (August 31, 2022). "President Biden Announces Appointments to the President's National Infrastructure Advisory Council". The White House. Retrieved August 29, 2023.
  3. ↑ Davis, Bob (May 9, 2021). "WSJ News Exclusive | Biden Administration to Name Thea Lee to Top Labor Department Post". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved August 29, 2023.
  4. ↑ "Left-Leaning Economist to Join U.S. Labor Department, WSJ Says". Bloomberg.com. May 9, 2021. Retrieved August 29, 2023.
  5. ↑ Lee, Thea (September 5, 2022). "This Labor Day, Smith College grad reflects on work for US Department of Labor". Daily Hampshire Gazette.
  6. ↑ "Why I Served on Trump's Manufacturing Council — and Why I Left". Cosmopolitan. August 21, 2017. Retrieved December 8, 2023.
  7. ↑ "Thea Mei Lee | U.S.- CHINA | ECONOMIC and SECURITY REVIEW COMMISSION". www.uscc.gov. Retrieved December 8, 2023.
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