Andy Puzder, the fast-food restaurant chief executive nominated to be labor secretary, hired an undocumented household employee, NBC News confirmed Monday night.
Puzder didn't keep this to himself though and notified the Trump administration that he once had an employee who did not have legal status in the U.S.
"I was unaware that [our housekeeper] was not legally permitted to work in the U.S. When I learned of her status, we immediately ended her employment and offered her assistance in getting legal status. We have fully paid back taxes to the IRS and the State of California and submitted all required paperwork regarding her employment," Puzder said in a statement released by the White House.
Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee chairman Lamar Alexander, R-Tennessee, said he believes this part of Puzder's past shouldn't disqualify him from joining the president's cabinet. However, hiring undocumented workers has derailed previous Cabinet nominees, including President Bill Clinton's attorney general nominee Kimba Wood.