{"id":130065,"date":"2026-09-07T03:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-09-07T10:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/marinresists.com\/?p=130065"},"modified":"2026-09-07T09:53:22","modified_gmt":"2026-09-07T16:53:22","slug":"trump-has-staggered-federal-unions-but-they-refuse-to-be-knocked-out","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/marinresists.com\/?p=130065","title":{"rendered":"Trump has staggered federal unions, but they refuse to be knocked out"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Beaten and weakened, but not busted.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Distressed and depleted, but not defeated.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That\u2019s the state of federal unions this Labor Day, more than 17 months after President Donald Trump issued <a href=\"https:\/\/www.federalregister.gov\/documents\/2025\/04\/03\/2025-05836\/exclusions-from-federal-labor-management-relations-programs\">Executive Order 14251<\/a>, one of the most aggressive attacks by the federal government on organized labor in American history.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-pullquote\">\n<blockquote>\n<p>While Trump\u2019s action stripped more than 950,000 federal employees of vital workplace rights and procedures, their unions remain in fighting form, even though they are a diminished force.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/figure>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Yet, while Trump\u2019s action stripped <a href=\"https:\/\/www.afge.org\/article\/summary-of-afge-lawsuits-against-trump--how-litigation-works-2\/\">more than 950,000 federal employees<\/a> of vital workplace rights and procedures, their unions remain in fighting form, even though they are a diminished force. Those unions have retaliated with more than a dozen lawsuits and various political actions that in some cases blunted Trump\u2019s blow. But there\u2019s no doubt his dictate hit the unions like a stunning military attack, devastating in significant ways their ability to represent federal employees.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For a broad array of federal offices, the March 27, 2025, executive order killed collective bargaining, prohibited automatic payroll union dues collection and eliminated employee grievance procedures. The EO made the blatantly bogus claim that even agencies such as the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service should be excluded from collective bargaining because they have as \u201ca primary function intelligence, counterintelligence, investigative, or national security work.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In February 2025, the American Federation of Government Employees had 331,765 members. According to a statement from AFGE, the largest federal union, it lost \u201croughly 100,000 members due to agencies being dismantled, mass firings, deferred resignation and attacks on collective bargaining.\u201d AFGE membership is now down about 25% since Trump\u2019s second inauguration.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-rkv-video\" data-wp-interactive=\"msnbcVideo\" data-wp-context=\"{&quot;post&quot;:{&quot;id&quot;:1006240,&quot;permalink&quot;:&quot;https:\/\/www.ms.now\/the-weeknight\/watch\/people-are-starving-why-largest-federal-workers-union-is-speaking-out-250865221719&quot;,&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https:\/\/vs-newsencoding.akamaized.net\/MSNBC\/n_weeknight_afge_everett_kelley_251028\/1\/hls\/index.m3u8&quot;,&quot;slug&quot;:&quot;people-are-starving-why-largest-federal-workers-union-is-speaking-out-250865221719&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;People are starvingu2019: Why largest federal workers union is speaking out&quot;,&quot;category&quot;:&quot;The Weeknight&quot;,&quot;excerpt&quot;:&quot;As the government shutdown extends into its fifth week, federal workers around the country have no idea when their next paycheck will clear. AFGE (American Federation of Government Employees) union President Everett Kelley joins The Weeknight to explain whatu2019s at stake after his urgent call to Congress to reopen the government as soon as possible.&quot;,&quot;date&quot;:&quot;October 28, 2025&quot;,&quot;full_date&quot;:&quot;2025-10-28T20:47:06-04:00&quot;,&quot;duration&quot;:&quot;06:58&quot;,&quot;durationSeconds&quot;:418,&quot;unique_id&quot;:8,&quot;mpx_guid&quot;:&quot;n_weeknight_afge_everett_kelley_251028&quot;,&quot;show_name&quot;:&quot;The Weeknight&quot;,&quot;playlists&quot;:[&quot;Congress&quot;,&quot;Democrats&quot;,&quot;Donald Trump&quot;,&quot;Health Care Reform&quot;,&quot;Politics&quot;,&quot;Republicans&quot;,&quot;U.S. news&quot;,&quot;White House&quot;]},&quot;jwplayer_key&quot;:&quot;Y52d\/qsiqzaY8+ucPsAp7C+xgNdtLGZNVX77f7nClqcvQj2K&quot;,&quot;isMuted&quot;:false,&quot;isPaid&quot;:false,&quot;articleMaybeGated&quot;:false}\" data-wp-init=\"callbacks.init\">\n<div class=\"msnbc-video-block-flex-box\">\n<div class=\"msnbc-video-block-video-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"msnbc-video-block-video\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<button class=\"msnbc-video-placeholder-button\" data-post-id=\"8\"><\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"visually-hidden\">Play<\/span><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/button><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.ms.now\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/1761698817954_n_weeknight_afge_everett_kelley_251028_1920x1080-3y54kn.jpg?resize=640%2C360&#038;ssl=1\" class=\"attachment-16x9_l size-16x9_l\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.ms.now\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/1761698817954_n_weeknight_afge_everett_kelley_251028_1920x1080-3y54kn.jpg 1920w, https:\/\/www.ms.now\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/1761698817954_n_weeknight_afge_everett_kelley_251028_1920x1080-3y54kn.jpg?resize=300,169 300w, https:\/\/www.ms.now\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/1761698817954_n_weeknight_afge_everett_kelley_251028_1920x1080-3y54kn.jpg?resize=768,432 768w, https:\/\/www.ms.now\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/1761698817954_n_weeknight_afge_everett_kelley_251028_1920x1080-3y54kn.jpg?resize=900,506 900w, https:\/\/www.ms.now\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/1761698817954_n_weeknight_afge_everett_kelley_251028_1920x1080-3y54kn.jpg?resize=1536,864 1536w, https:\/\/www.ms.now\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/1761698817954_n_weeknight_afge_everett_kelley_251028_1920x1080-3y54kn.jpg?resize=1000,563 1000w, https:\/\/www.ms.now\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/1761698817954_n_weeknight_afge_everett_kelley_251028_1920x1080-3y54kn.jpg?resize=860,484 860w, https:\/\/www.ms.now\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/1761698817954_n_weeknight_afge_everett_kelley_251028_1920x1080-3y54kn.jpg?resize=760,428 760w, https:\/\/www.ms.now\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/1761698817954_n_weeknight_afge_everett_kelley_251028_1920x1080-3y54kn.jpg?resize=560,315 560w, https:\/\/www.ms.now\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/1761698817954_n_weeknight_afge_everett_kelley_251028_1920x1080-3y54kn.jpg?resize=50,28 50w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"msnbc-video-block-video-info\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<button aria-label=\"Tap to Unmute\" class=\"msnbc-video-block-video-info-mute\" data-wp-on--click=\"actions.unmute\" data-wp-class--is-unmuted=\"!context.isMuted\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/button><\/p>\n<div class=\"msnbc-video-block-video-info-meta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a class=\"video-title\" data-wp-bind--href=\"state.post.permalink\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tPeople are starving\u2019: Why largest federal workers union is speaking out\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"video-date-and-duration\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span data-wp-text=\"state.post.date\">October 28, 2025<\/span> \/ <span data-wp-text=\"state.post.duration\">06:58<\/span><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Republicans have a long history of bashing government workers. Animated by decades of small-government ideology, they have moved to cut federal employee compensation, facilitate faster firings of federal employees and block avenues for union reps to communicate with management about things like workplace conditions that affect union and non-union members alike. Trump dragged that antagonism to new lows, with his first presidential campaign pledge to \u201cdrain the swamp,\u201d a cruel term that likens federal employees to swamp dwellers.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Trump\u2019s prohibition against automatic payroll union dues deductions was a particularly painful mugging. \u201cWe lost 50% of our membership overnight,\u201d said Randy Erwin, president of the National Federation of Federal Employees. The union\u2019s membership fell another 10% when some feds accepted Trump\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/ourpublicservice.org\/know-the-facts\/resource-library\/reports\/the-federal-workforce-one-year-into-the-trump-administration\">deferred resignation<\/a> program. That program pushed them to quit instead of being fired through Elon Musk\u2019s so-called Department of Government Efficiency, a purge that was based more on MAGA politics than any employee\u2019s individual performance.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-pullquote\">\n<blockquote>\n<p>Republicans have a long history of bashing government workers. Animated by decades of small-government ideology, they have moved to cut federal employee compensation, facilitate faster firings of federal employees and block avenues for union reps to communicate with management.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/figure>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But NFFE demonstrated labor\u2019s resilience by organizing 65 new agency bargaining units in a year, compared to typically 10 or fewer, according to Erwin. Now, NFFE\u2019s membership is down about 10% from the beginning of Trump 2.0, Erwin said, \u201cand we\u2019re trending upward.\u201d Both unions moved to electronic dues collections, with members paying automatically by credit card, debit card or bank account deduction.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWe had a plan\u201d before Trump took office again, AFGE President Everett Kelley told me. \u201cWe had prepared. We\u2019ve been implementing that plan \u2026 every day.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That preparation included a confidential 10-point plan for confronting Trump\u2019s belligerence. Switching to electronic dues collection was a vital strategic objective. From past experience, AFGE officials knew Trump would kick local union reps out of rent-free office space in government agencies, another indignity making it harder for them to connect with members. So, another point in the plan urged union locals to find alternative spaces or transition to virtual operations.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-rkv-video\" data-wp-interactive=\"msnbcVideo\" data-wp-context=\"{&quot;post&quot;:{&quot;id&quot;:624271,&quot;permalink&quot;:&quot;https:\/\/www.ms.now\/deadline-white-house\/watch\/massive-rally-takes-place-in-washington-dc-for-fired-federal-workers-marking-trump-s-100th-day-238570565810&quot;,&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https:\/\/vs-newsencoding.akamaized.net\/MSNBC\/n_wh_deadline_firedworkers_250429\/1\/hls\/index.m3u8&quot;,&quot;slug&quot;:&quot;massive-rally-takes-place-in-washington-dc-for-fired-federal-workers-marking-trump-s-100th-day-238570565810&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;Massive rally takes place in Washington DC for fired federal workers marking Trumpu2019s 100th day&quot;,&quot;category&quot;:&quot;Deadline: White House with Nicolle Wallace&quot;,&quot;excerpt&quot;:&quot;Jacob Soboroff, NBC News Correspondent speaks with two former employees from the Department of Housing and Urban Development live from Union Station in Washington DC with reaction from a rally for federal workers marking Donald Trumpu2019s 100th day in office, to bring attention to the damage done by the Trump Administration to the federal workforce which has cut thousands of jobs across all sectors of the government from veterans, civil servants, and scientists.&quot;,&quot;date&quot;:&quot;April 29, 2025&quot;,&quot;full_date&quot;:&quot;2025-04-29T17:26:02-04:00&quot;,&quot;duration&quot;:&quot;02:46&quot;,&quot;durationSeconds&quot;:166,&quot;unique_id&quot;:9,&quot;mpx_guid&quot;:&quot;n_wh_deadline_firedworkers_250429&quot;,&quot;show_name&quot;:&quot;Deadline: White House with Nicolle Wallace&quot;,&quot;playlists&quot;:[]},&quot;jwplayer_key&quot;:&quot;Y52d\/qsiqzaY8+ucPsAp7C+xgNdtLGZNVX77f7nClqcvQj2K&quot;,&quot;isMuted&quot;:false,&quot;isPaid&quot;:false,&quot;articleMaybeGated&quot;:false}\" data-wp-init=\"callbacks.init\">\n<div class=\"msnbc-video-block-flex-box\">\n<div class=\"msnbc-video-block-video-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"msnbc-video-block-video\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<button class=\"msnbc-video-placeholder-button\" data-post-id=\"9\"><\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"visually-hidden\">Play<\/span><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/button><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.ms.now\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/1745961953906_n_wh_deadline_firedworkers_250429_1920x1080-1j12vv-1.jpg?resize=640%2C360&#038;ssl=1\" class=\"attachment-16x9_l size-16x9_l\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.ms.now\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/1745961953906_n_wh_deadline_firedworkers_250429_1920x1080-1j12vv-1.jpg 1920w, https:\/\/www.ms.now\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/1745961953906_n_wh_deadline_firedworkers_250429_1920x1080-1j12vv-1.jpg?resize=300,169 300w, https:\/\/www.ms.now\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/1745961953906_n_wh_deadline_firedworkers_250429_1920x1080-1j12vv-1.jpg?resize=768,432 768w, https:\/\/www.ms.now\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/1745961953906_n_wh_deadline_firedworkers_250429_1920x1080-1j12vv-1.jpg?resize=900,506 900w, https:\/\/www.ms.now\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/1745961953906_n_wh_deadline_firedworkers_250429_1920x1080-1j12vv-1.jpg?resize=1536,864 1536w, https:\/\/www.ms.now\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/1745961953906_n_wh_deadline_firedworkers_250429_1920x1080-1j12vv-1.jpg?resize=1000,563 1000w, https:\/\/www.ms.now\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/1745961953906_n_wh_deadline_firedworkers_250429_1920x1080-1j12vv-1.jpg?resize=860,484 860w, https:\/\/www.ms.now\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/1745961953906_n_wh_deadline_firedworkers_250429_1920x1080-1j12vv-1.jpg?resize=760,428 760w, https:\/\/www.ms.now\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/1745961953906_n_wh_deadline_firedworkers_250429_1920x1080-1j12vv-1.jpg?resize=560,315 560w, https:\/\/www.ms.now\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/1745961953906_n_wh_deadline_firedworkers_250429_1920x1080-1j12vv-1.jpg?resize=50,28 50w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"msnbc-video-block-video-info\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<button aria-label=\"Tap to Unmute\" class=\"msnbc-video-block-video-info-mute\" data-wp-on--click=\"actions.unmute\" data-wp-class--is-unmuted=\"!context.isMuted\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/button><\/p>\n<div class=\"msnbc-video-block-video-info-meta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a class=\"video-title\" data-wp-bind--href=\"state.post.permalink\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tMassive rally takes place in Washington DC for fired federal workers marking Trump\u2019s 100th day\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"video-date-and-duration\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span data-wp-text=\"state.post.date\">April 29, 2025<\/span> \/ <span data-wp-text=\"state.post.duration\">02:46<\/span><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWe saw what he did in his first administration, Kelley said, \u201cand we learned from him.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Joseph McCartin, a labor historian at Georgetown University, said in an interview that Trump\u2019s actions have been among the \u201cmost significant union-weakening or union-busting efforts\u201d in the history of the United States. They\u2019re certainly the most significant since 1962, when President John F. Kennedy signed <a href=\"https:\/\/www.presidency.ucsb.edu\/documents\/executive-order-10988-employee-management-cooperation-the-federal-service\">Executive Order 10988<\/a>, which gave federal workers \u00a0limited collective bargaining rights for the first time. (They are not allowed to negotiate over salary, benefits and other issues.)<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Trump\u2019s order is an about-face. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.whitehouse.gov\/fact-sheets\/2025\/03\/fact-sheet-president-donald-j-trump-exempts-agencies-with-national-security-missions-from-federal-collective-bargaining-requirements\/\">His administration claims<\/a> the Civil Service Reform Act of 1978, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.afge.org\/article\/a-brief-history-of-collective-bargaining-in-the-federal-sector\/\">which enshrined federal collective bargaining in statute<\/a>, \u201cenables hostile Federal unions to obstruct agency management. This is dangerous in agencies with national security responsibilities.\u201d The administration doesn\u2019t care how far from real national security responsibilities those agencies really are.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-pullquote\">\n<blockquote>\n<p>Stronger laws are needed to protect federal labor rights from the whims of an anti-union White House. Collective bargaining should not be erased by the stroke of a president\u2019s pen.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/figure>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Notably, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.whitehouse.gov\/fact-sheets\/2025\/03\/fact-sheet-president-donald-j-trump-exempts-agencies-with-national-security-missions-from-federal-collective-bargaining-requirements\/\">federal law enforcement personnel<\/a>, who are directly involved in national security, including Border Patrol and Immigration and Customs Enforcement, were excluded from Trump\u2019s anti-union tirade. Their <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/news\/powerpost\/wp\/2016\/10\/17\/two-federal-unions-cling-to-trump-despite-everything\/\">unions endorsed Trump<\/a>. The White House declined to comment on Trump\u2019s exclusion of law enforcement personnel<strong>.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">What\u2019s next for federal unions? Many of their lawsuits remain in litigation. Legal action has helped labor in some cases, but it is slow. Federal labor can expect no substantial legislative relief if Republicans continue to control Congress and Trump sits in the White House.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Even if a Democrat is elected the next president, there\u2019s no guarantee the labor organizations will regain all they have lost. Even if they do, another Republican president could strip them of power again.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Stronger laws are needed to protect federal labor rights from the whims of an anti-union White House. Collective bargaining should not be erased by the stroke of a president\u2019s pen. As McCartin argued, Trump has demonstrated how weak labor rights are under a president claiming imperial power.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If unions only regain the rights they had before Trump, he said, then that \u201cwill have been a failure.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The post <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ms.now\/opinion\/trump-federal-unions-labor-law-rights\">Trump has staggered federal unions, but they refuse to be knocked out<\/a> appeared first on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ms.now\">MS NOW<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Beaten and weakened, but not busted. Distressed and depleted, but not defeated. That\u2019s the state&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":476,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"elementor_theme","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[41,1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-130065","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-ms-now","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Trump has staggered federal unions, but they refuse to be knocked out - Marin &amp; theNation Resists<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ms.now\/opinion\/trump-federal-unions-labor-law-rights\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Trump has staggered federal unions, but they refuse to be knocked out - Marin &amp; theNation Resists\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Beaten and weakened, but not busted. Distressed and depleted, but not defeated. 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