Trumping the President’s Union Busting

In an overt attack on organized labor and worker power, President Trump issued an Executive Order (EO) on March 27, 2025, ending collective bargaining rights for certain federal employees (EO 14251, Exclusions from Federal Labor-Management Relations Programs). Collective bargaining is the process by which a union negotiates with an employer over terms and conditions of employment, including things like wages, benefits, working hours, and leave, and the result is a legally binding contract. Federal employees–already limited in their labor rights–are not permitted to negotiate wages, benefits, or job classifications, and are prohibited from striking.

The order rescinds collective bargaining rights for more than 30 federal agencies with “national security missions” via the Civil Service Reform Act of 1978 (CSRA). The White House fact sheet on the action states that “The President needs a responsive and accountable civil service to protect our national security,” (ironic that this EO was issued just 4 days after Jeff Goldberg’s account of Trump’s national security leaders leaking classified information on the messaging app Signal) (Fact Sheet: President Donald J. Trump Exempts Agencies with National Security Missions from Federal Collective Bargaining Requirements; “The Trump Administration Accidentally Texted Me Its War Plans”). This EO is one of several presidential actions aimed directly at organized labor in an effort to stifle worker rights and voice inside and outside the federal government.

A bipartisan effort in the House aims to undo this harm and restore this vital right to federal workers. The Protect America’s Workforce Act, introduced April 1st by Representatives Brian Fitzpatrick (R PA-1) and Jared Golden (D ME-2), would codify collective bargaining rights for the one million federal employees affected by the EO. (Fitzpatrick, Golden Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Restore Collective Bargaining Rights for Federal Workers). Representative Fitzpatrick said of the bill, “We can defend our national security without silencing those who serve it.”

"We can defend our national security without silencing those who serve it." - Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick

Denying collective bargaining rights to public sector employees is both unfair and counter-productive. We need our civil service to attract the best and the brightest, and one way to do that is to ensure that those workers are respected and have a voice in their workplaces. In a time of relentless attacks on federal workers by Elon Musk and the Trump administration, it is heartening to see bipartisan support for our career service. Let’s hope this is a sign of more bipartisan support for workers moving forward.