by Stanley Dunlap, Georgia Recorder
April 4, 2025

Former Albany Herald business reporter Bárbara Rivera Holmes became the first Hispanic woman to hold a statewide executive office position when she was sworn in Friday as state labor commissioner.

During Friday’s swearing-in ceremony, Republican Gov. Brian Kemp trumpeted Holmes’ groundbreaking accomplishment becoming Georgia’s first Hispanic woman to become a constitutional officer. The former news reporter resigned as president and CEO of the Albany Area Chamber of Commerce after being selected by Kemp to fill the remaining term of former Labor Commissioner Bruce Thompson, who died in November following an eight-month battle with pancreatic cancer.

“Like I said last month when we announced the appointment of Bárbara Rivera Holmes to this position, I said that she was smart, accomplished and dedicated to growing opportunities for hard working Georgians,” Kemp said. “She also brings unique experience in economic development, especially in rural parts of our state, and education at the highest levels in our state will benefit all those who are looking for work.”

Holmes will begin leading the Georgia Department of Labor amid rising fears of a recession as President Donald Trump’s administration levies historic tariffs that critics argue could raise the price of U.S. goods while disrupting the global economy.

Her predecessor, Thompson, spent a decade in the Senate prior to becoming labor commissioner in 2023, taking over a state agency that had struggled to process a surge of unemployment claims since the start of the pandemic.

Late Georgia Labor Commissioner Bruce Thompson honored by state senators for his service

On Friday, Holmes credited her family’s sacrifices that included her grandparents in 1961 seeking political refuge from Cuba in America as the driving force in her becoming the state’s 11th labor commissioner.

Holmes said Friday that she plans to run for a four-year term as labor commissioner when her current term ends in the 2026 election year.

“The Department of Labor is vital to our state’s economy for supporting workforce development, job attainment, safe working conditions and the prosperity of our communities,” she said.

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