Business Notes

Political honeymoons seldom begin as auspiciously as Lynn Martin's. Last week the Senate voted 94 to 0 to confirm the five-term Illinois Congresswoman, who was defeated in a race for the U.S. Senate last November, as George Bush's new Labor Secretary.

A fiscal conservative who is a moderate on social issues, Martin, 51, built a reputation as a Republican maverick by voting to override Bush's vetoes of bills raising the federal minimum wage and guaranteeing family and medical leave for workers. Despite those votes, organized labor isn't happy. "Her voting record has not reflected a sensitivity to the needs of workers," complained Lane Kirkland, president of the 14 million-member AFL-CIO. Business groups such as the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the National Association of Manufacturers welcomed her appointment.