Cheri Helt files to run for state Labor and Industries commissioner
One of seven candidates for suddenly vacant position
BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- Bend restaurateur and former Oregon House and Bend-La Pine School Board member Cheri Helt filed on Tuesday's May 17 primary filing deadline as the seventh candidate for commissioner of Oregon's Bureau of Labor and Industries, a nonpartisan position that drew greater scrutiny amid the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and regulations.
Helt, who with her husband Steve owns Zydeco restaurant in downtown Bend and represented Bend in the Oregon House of Representatives from 2019 to 2021, said she wants to turn BOLI into an agency that protects and advances Oregon workers. The Republican lawmaker lost her 2020 reelection bid to Bend Democrat Jason Kropf.
“Oregon’s workers have been through so much in recent years. From the pandemic and workplace closures to sky-high housing prices and now broad-based inflation, our workers need an ally in Salem," Helt said in her announcement.
" As State Representative, I sponsored Oregon’s first family leave bill and fought for fair and equitable treatment for Oregon’s workforce. BOLI can do more to help ensure the availability of affordable and workforce housing by helping employers, employees, landlords and builders coordinate to provide the housing Oregon families desperately need.”
“I will provide the leadership needed to make BOLI the asset Oregon’s workers and small businesses need to propel a growing economy that benefits all Oregonians,” she added.
Current Labor Commissioner Val Hole had filed to seek reelection but instead moved to the 4th Congressional District race after veteran Democrat incumbent Peter DeFazio announced he'd not seek another term.
The Helts' restaurant offers 100%-employer-paid health insurance for any of its 62 employees who work 30 or more hours per week. It also offers a 6% match on 401(K) contributions.
“Small businesses make Oregon’s economy go," Helt said. "BOLI should help strengthen the relationship between small businesses and their employees by making its regulations easy to understand for everyone involved and creating apprenticeship and housing programs that help small business employees thrive in Oregon.”
Prior to her service in the House of Representatives, Helt served for nine years on the Bend-LaPine School Board, where she led efforts to enhance job training and to get students ready for apprenticeship programs.
Helt has three children aged 11, 20 and 22. Her children are all products of or currently attend Bend public schools. Her son serves in the Oregon National Guard and is currently deployed to Eastern Europe as part of the Biden Administration’s effort to deter Russian President Vladimir Putin from further aggression in the area.
