Workforce
Trump administration nixes union contracts at FEMA, USCIS, food safety agencies
Union officials warn that their excision from federal workplaces will ultimately degrade service to the public.
Workforce
EPA becomes the second federal agency to cancel its union contracts
In an email Friday, an official claimed the continued recognition of unions at EPA would constitute “irreparable harm to national security” at the agency responsible for fighting pollution.
Workforce
In partisan letter, Bisignano shifts blame on 1-800 call times, cites dated stats
Current and former Social Security officials said the commissioner at various points blamed his predecessor for problems that did not exist and took credit for Biden-era improvements.
Workforce
VA terminates most of its union contracts, appearing to disregard OPM guidance
The move runs against the Trump administration’s claims to federal jurists that agencies would wait until the conclusion of litigation challenging the president’s executive order seeking to outlaw collective bargaining at most federal agencies on national security grounds.
Workforce
A second appeals court has allowed Trump’s anti-union EO to go into effect
A three-judge panel on the Ninth Circuit Court rejected claims that President Trump’s barring collective bargaining for two-thirds of the federal workforce was retaliatory in nature, finding that the administration would have done so regardless of labor groups’ various legal challenges.
Workforce
New lawsuit scrutinizes Hegseth’s implementation of Trump’s anti-union EO
While previous lawsuits argued simply that President Trump’s citation of the 1978 Civil Service Reform Act’s so-called “national security exemption” en masse violated federal regulatory law, a new suit from IFPTE drills down on the Defense secretary’s implementation of the controversial edict.
Management
Trump’s controversial OSC nominee pulled from confirmation hearing
The hearing for the White House’s pick to replace Federal Labor Relations Authority Chairwoman Susan Tsui Grundmann, who is still challenging her ouster, was similarly postponed.
Workforce
Another judge has dismissed the Trump administration’s effort to pre-clear anti-union EO
Both of the White House’s efforts to secure declaratory judgments in advance of formally stripping more than 1 million federal workers of their collective bargaining rights have now failed.
Workforce
Lawmakers pursue parallel paths toward blocking Trump’s anti-union order
While House Democrats and unions are working over the August recess to secure signatures on a discharge petition to force the chamber to consider a bill overturning the president’s edict stripping two-thirds of federal employees of their collective bargaining rights, the House NDAA includes language blocking its implementation at the Pentagon.
Workforce
Trump’s anti-union EO can remain in effect during challenge, appellate court says
The judge who dissented from an appellate court’s initial decision allowing the edict to be implemented issued a warning about the high standards that should accompany a judicial stay.
Workforce
Internal Veterans Affairs memo shows plan to scrutinize disability work from home accommodations
A department press secretary said the new policy is to ensure reasonable accommodations remain "necessary, reasonable and effective," while the American Federation of Government Employees contended it would push employees with disabilities out of the VA.
Management
Trump administration narrows effort to nix project labor agreements for federal construction contracts
The move to narrow the rollback of a Biden-era order mandating contractors negotiate with unions before major construction projects came after a federal judge blocked the White House’s first attempt.
Workforce
Union calls for reinstatement of EPA workers suspended over letter
More than 130 EPA workers were put on administrative leave over their signature of a letter that criticized Administrator Lee Zeldin’s direction for the agency.
Workforce
Third postal union ratifies new labor contract
The agreements come as a new postmaster general is under pressure to unwind the reforms of his predecessor.
Workforce
SSA touts service improvements, but reassignments tell a different story
Though Commissioner Frank Bisignano has heralded the addition of AI assistants to the Social Security Administration’s customer service streams, the agency is quietly reassigning field office staff to man its 1-800 number.
Updated
Pay & Benefits
More than 60,000 feds are still waiting for their 2025 pay raise
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s decision last spring to shutter a slew of advisory committees has imperiled already enacted pay raises for federal employees in blue collar jobs.
Oversight
OSC recommends bonuses for whistleblowers at Maryland USDA facility
The reallocation of $50 million to upgrade a dilapidated federal research facility would not have been possible without the rights afforded workers through collective bargaining, union leaders argued.
Workforce
Trump’s anti-union executive order has been blocked, again
A federal judge in California tailored his decision around the administration’s violations against labor groups’ First Amendment rights, avoiding thornier questions about presidential power.
Management
HUD to move into the National Science Foundation headquarters, no current plan on where to relocate NSF employees
The Department of Housing and Urban Development had previously announced its intention to sell its current headquarters, which requires more than $500 million in maintenance repairs.
Workforce