Weekly Union Recap June 2, 2025

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IFPTE Federal Sector Round Up on
Trump/Musk and DOGE Attacks on Federal Workers

IFPTE continues to seek support for a House discharge petition to bring HR 2550, the “Keep America’s Workforce Act,” which already has more than 50% of house members supporting the bill with 222 bipartisan cosponsors. IFPTE Legislative Director, Faraz Khan, also continues pounding the pavement on the Senate side of Capitol Hill to procure a bipartisan companion bill in that chamber. While there have been some Republicans, including Maine Senator, Susan Collins, expressing concerns with the Trump union-busting Executive Order, which is why the bill is needed, none have stepped up thus far to be an original author of the bill with Virginia Senator Mark Warner. Of course, IFPTE has many members living in Maine and working at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard – we certainly encourage IFPTE members who live in her state to contact the Senator’s office (202-224-2453) and urge her to match her rhetoric with action. IFPTE will continue to keep Locals apprised of the status of the House discharge petition and the status of a Senate companion bill.

The fallout against the so-called ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ that will eliminate Medicaid for nearly 14 million Americans and throw another 10 million Americans off of food assistance, and that passed the House by a mere single vote, continues. While IFPTE and the larger labor movement will continue to fight against this bill, Americans are realizing just how immoral and draconian the bill is and understand that the historic cuts to these programs are intended to pay for the tax cuts in the same bill that benefit billionaires and corporations. That’s right—taking from the most vulnerable to benefit the ultra-wealthy. AFL-CIO President, Liz Shuler, called the bill, “shameful,” and IFPTE describing it as “a disaster.”   In addition to Medicaid and food assistance beneficiaries hurt by this legislation, IFPTE members working in the healthcare industry, as well as public sector workers will also be harmed, as federal Medicaid and food assistance resources are the largest source of revenue from the federal government to states. Sadly, it will impact jobs if allowed to stand.   IFPTE will continue to work against this budget package as the debate on this issue moves over to the Senate. An action item for IFPTE members is included in the Recap.

On the legal front, last week, a federal judge in California issued an injunction against President Trump’s purging of federal workers and attempted reorganization of the federal government without Congressional approval. The order blocks the Administration’s plans to unilaterally implement across-the-board layoffs of federal employees in the departments of Agriculture, Commerce, Energy, Health and Human Services, Housing and Urban Development, Interior, Labor, State, Treasury, Transportation, and Veterans Affairs. It also applies to AmeriCorps, Peace Corps, the Environmental Protection Agency, the General Services Administration, the National Labor Relations Board, the National Science Foundation, the Small Business Administration, the Social Security Administration, the Office of Management and Budget, Office of Personnel Management, and the Department of Government Efficiency.  However, it does not apply to the Department of Defense (DOD).  

On that front, IFPTE is a co-plaintiff in a RIF case in D.C. District Court covering all of our Locals, including DOD. Unfortunately, our requests for a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) and Preliminary Injunction (PI) were both rejected by the court, but the case is still pending on the merits. Plaintiffs asked for leave to file a second amended complaint this past Monday, and the government has already objected. IFPTE will keep Locals updated as this litigation continues.

At the grassroots level, IFPTE joined IFPTE members in New York City this week as they are, quite literally, being thrown out of their office space and science lab. Locals 29 and 30 represented scientists and researchers working at the Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS), located at Columbia University in New York, were instructed by NASA management last month to vacate their offices by Wednesday, May 29th. NASA and DOGE, which is behind the eviction, are providing no replacement work location for the more than 100 scientists and researchers, leaving them to fend for themselves to find office space, or work from home. President Matt Biggs and Legislative Director Faraz Khan, who travelled to GISS offices on Tuesday, spoke to multiple media outlets to bring transparency to this issue, calling the eviction, “outrageous, highly disrespectful to the scientists and researchers, fiscally irresponsible, and will put a huge stain in NASA’s impeccable reputation.” More on this in the Recap.       

Finally, IFPTE continues to roll out the EDues program with Locals 121 and 1 being the first Locals to start signing up members. Of course, this became necessary because of President Trump’s Executive Order eliminating union dues payroll deduction across most federal agencies – an executive order that labor is suing to block. We again thank all of the Locals across the IFPTE family that stepped up to support IFPTE’s federal sector by contributing to the set-up cost of the EDues system. THANK YOU again to Locals 1, 20, 21, 70, 160, 162, 194, 195, 1921 and 2001 for your generous contributions to the EDues program!

Legislative: 

  1. CALL Your Senators – Let them know that Cuts to Medicaid and Food Assistance = Lost Jobs and tens of millions being denied health insurance and food assistance. Right now, the Senate is considering a budget that would have the largest cuts in history to Medicaid and to SNAP food assistance, as well as more cuts to retirement benefits for federal workers. Health care, food assistance, and dignity in retirement—these programs are a cornerstone of a secure existence for working people.
  2. The Protect America’s Workers Act (HR 2550), introduced last month by Republican Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick and Democratic Rep. Jared Golden to repeal the Trump Executive Order (EO) eliminating collective bargaining rights for 1.5 million federal workers, now has 222 cosponsors, representing more than 50% of the House of Representatives.   This means that IFPTE and labor can now pivot to working to get these cosponsors to sign a discharge petition to force a full vote of the House of Representatives. A discharge petition is needed because despite the overwhelming support for the legislation, House Speaker Mike Johnson will not schedule the bill for consideration. See IFPTE’s letter supporting the House bill.
  3. Legislative Director Faraz Khan continues to work with key Senators to procure a similar bill to the Fitzpatrick-Golden bill in the Senate, and IFPTE anticipates a bill to be introduced in the coming days, with Virginia Senator Mark Warner expected to author the Senate version of the bill. Please continue to Call your Congressional Representative and ask them to cosponsor the bipartisan Protect America’s Workforce Act.
  4. Ball is in Senate’s Court: Tell Your Senators, “Hands Off Federal Employees’ Retirement Benefits and Merit System Protections.” As stated above, IFPTE and the larger labor movement’s legislative efforts were successful in getting the FERS pension cuts for federal workers removed from the House-passed budget reconciliation package. However, the fight is not over as this issue now moves over to the Senate.   In other words, we need to shift our focus to Senate lawmakers and tell them “hands off” of our retirement benefits. Slashing retirement benefits and reducing the take-home pay of federal workers will trigger an exodus of experienced and skilled federal workers and hollow out agencies that provide essential services and functions. Congress needs to hear from everyday Americans that lawmakers should be preserving the government’s ability to recruit and retain the best talent America has to offer to address the challenges our nation faces, support our national security and economic prosperity, provide the American people with high-quality services, and keep our communities safe. Email Your Senators and urge them to oppose any cuts to federal employees’ retirement benefits, any reductions to take-home pay, and any effort to force newly hired federal employees to choose between pay and civil service protections.
  5. IFPTE continues to ask lawmakers to cosponsor HR 3093, The “Restoring Employment and Hiring Incentives for Removed Employees Act” or REHIRE Act to rebuild the federal workforce by providing a hiring preference for federal workers who were fired or otherwise involuntarily removed during the Trump Administration, and HR 3094, the ‘‘Probationary Reduction for Employee Protections Act’’ or PREP Act would clarify that federal employees who are new to the competitive service have a 1-year probationary period, and employees who are moving to a new competitive service position from another position will have a 6-month probationary period. Both bills are authored by Congressman Don Beyer (D-VA) and IFPTE is encouraging Locals to also urge their House members to cosponsor these bills.

Legal:

  1. In what can only be described as a major victory, on May 22 a Federal Court issued a restraining order prohibiting 22 federal agencies from moving forward with their massive downsizing plans. In her decision, Federal Judge Susan Illston stated that “Presidents may set policy priorities for the executive branch, and agency heads may implement them. This much is undisputed,” said Judge Susan Illston for the Northern District of California in her May 22 decision. “But Congress creates federal agencies, funds them, and gives them duties that—by statute—they must carry out. Agencies may not conduct large-scale reorganizations and reductions-in-force in blatant disregard of Congress’s mandates, and a President may not initiate large-scale executive branch reorganization without partnering with Congress.”  Judge Illston’s decision is an extension of her May 9 two-week temporary restraining order, pausing implementation of Executive Order 14210 and agency-level reduction-in-force (RIF) activity across dozens of federal agencies.  The case was brought by unions and nonprofit plaintiffs against the Trump administration based upon “fundamental questions of executive authority and separation of powers.” 

    The Court found plaintiffs are likely to succeed on their claims that Executive Order 14210 and the related agency directives are unlawful and exceed executive authority under both the APA and the Constitution.  The judge found that Plaintiffs demonstrated imminent, irreparable harm, as RIFs were set to begin as early as May 18, also emphasizing the importance of preserving Congressional authority over agency functions and finding that the public interest favored maintaining the status quo.  The TRO affects a wide range of agencies, including HHS, HUD, DOL, VA, SBA, SSA, and AmeriCorps. The ruling was issued following the submission of over 1,000 pages of declarations from unions, nonprofits, and local governments.  In granting its temporary restraining order, the court noted several times that “the President may not, without Congress, fundamentally reorganize the federal agencies.”

    The restraining order applies to the following agencies:  OMB, OPM, DOGE, USDA, Commerce, Energy, HHS, HUD, Interior, Labor, State, Treasury, Transportation, VA, AmeriCorps, EPA, GSA, NLRB, NSF, SBA, and SSA and their efforts to implement or enforce Sections 3(c) and 3(e) of Executive Order 14210 or the February 26, 2025 OMB/OPM Memorandum. 

    While this ruling does cover EPA and SSA, where IFPTE members work, it does not cover other federal agencies where IFPTE members are employed, including DOD.  Furthermore, the next coalition case may include mass RIFs.  IFPTE is a co-plaintiff in a RIF case in D.C. District Court covering all of our Locals, including DOD. As we previously informed you, plaintiffs’ requests for a TRO and PI were rejected by the court. This case is still pending on the merits; the government filed a motion to dismiss on May 15.    Here is the amended complaint.  We will keep Locals updated as this litigation continues.
  2. A DC Circuit Appeals panel issued a 2-1 decision lifting the Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) against President Trump’s union-busting. The May 7 injunction on the Trump union-busting EO in the NTEU lawsuit was unfortunately lifted late Friday, May 16 by a three-judge appeals panel in the DC Federal Circuit. The 2-1 majority decision lifting the restraining order ruled that the National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU) did not prove damages to the Union, even though the EO caused the immediate elimination of payroll Union Dues from federal union members to their Unions, including IFPTE. See the NTEU lawsuit here.

    Despite the setback IFPTE continues to monitor the AFGE case in the Northern District of California, which has a longer briefing schedule that continues through this summer, and we expect a third lawsuit to be forthcoming later this summer that IFPTE is expected to be a part of.

    Here are some answers to questions the International has received from federal Locals and members:

    ·       What is the status of the AFGE case, when (date) will a possible injunction be issued/decided upon?  This week the Judge in the AFGE et al case filed in the Northern District of CA issued an order for a hearing on the preliminary injunction request, setting it for June 18, 2025, at 10:00 a.m. in San Francisco. 

    ·       When will the third lawsuit that IFPTE will be a part of be filed?  The coalition partners met last week to discuss coverage and strategy, and the date of the filing is still yet to be determined.   While the process is not as speedy as we would like we do expect that third lawsuit to be forthcoming this summer.

    ·       What EOs will the third lawsuit be covering?  The collective bargaining EO.  

    We will keep Locals updated as things progress and when we get to drafting declarations based on the information we have gotten from Locals.  
  3. More lawsuits to come – As part of the overall litigation strategy, IFPTE is part of a coalition of unions joining together to file an additional lawsuit against the Executive Order in a venue to be determined. We thank those Locals that have already provided information to our Legal Department and ask that Local leaders continue to do so as we prepare.   Please contact IFPTE General Counsel Teresa Ellis at tellis@ifpte.org with any pertinent information regarding specific impacts from the imposition of the EO.
  4. IFPTE RIF guidance to Locals – Please see the March 11 memo from IFPTE GC, Teresa Ellis, and Greg McGillivary of McGillivary Steele Elkin regarding Reductions-In-Force (RIFs) and Mass Terminations of Federal Employees. OPM, OMB and DOGE mandated that federal agencies produce RIF lists by April 14.   RIF guidance memo here.

    See the February 26th OPM memo instructing agencies to largely ignore RIF language in union negotiated CBA’s and calling on agencies to identify positions to RIF by April 14.  IFPTE recommends that Locals file grievances if management refuses to abide negotiated RIF language in their respective CBAs.
     
  5. Legal support for federal workers – Rise Up, Fight Back – Hundreds of thousands of federal workers have had their basic rights violated on the job—including tens of thousands who have been fired illegally. Federal workers have an urgent need for legal support. Federal workers now have a network of lawyers helping to get them the justice they deserve.  See the GovExec article here.
  6. Status of all lawsuits against the current administration can be found at  Just Security: “Litigation Tracker:  Legal Challenges to Trump Administration Actions.”

Grassroots

  1. “Civil Service Strong” coalition – IFPTE has partnered with the Civil Service Strong project of Democracy Forward, along with other unions, to support our members who are civil servants under attack by the Trump administration. Alongside the 95% of people who believe civil servants should be hired and promoted based on their merit rather than their political beliefs, Civil Service Strong is committed to supporting a career, non-partisan civil service and the people who power it. Learn more here.
  2. MAKE A CALL – Restore Federal Employee Rights Now – IFPTE joins the AFL-CIO campaign asking every single American who cares about the fundamental freedom of all workers to join a union to call their member of Congress right now. Fill out the form on the right to receive a call or dial 844-896-5059. Learn more here.
  3. IFPTE Members are telling their Congressional lawmakers: “Hands Off Federal Employees’ Retirement Benefits and Merit System Protection” – Don’t allow millionaires and billionaires in Congress and the White House to use federal employees as a cost offset for budget reconciliation legislation. Learn more here… https://actionnetwork.org/letters/tell-congress-hands-off-federal-employees-retirement-benefits-and-merit-system-protections/

Public Relations and Communications

This past week, IFPTE clips subscribers were kept informed about President Matt Biggs and Legislative Director Faraz Khan’s trip to New York City to speak out on behalf of members at the Goddard Institute for Science Studies (GISS), a specialized research group within NASA. Both Space.com and Gothamist covered the ongoing assault on the important work at GISS and the dedicated professionals who do it.  

In addition to continuing coverage of the Trump administration’s assault on workers’ rights and the rule of law, among other things, this upcoming week’s clips will feature a canvassing of articles covering bored billionaire Elon Musk’s unlawful stint as an unauthorized advisor to the president – including what may come next.

To sign up for clips, please fill out this form: https://www.ifpte.org/federal-news-clips.

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