{"id":4325,"date":"2025-01-30T15:15:43","date_gmt":"2025-01-30T15:15:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/?p=4325"},"modified":"2025-01-30T15:18:48","modified_gmt":"2025-01-30T15:18:48","slug":"federal-employee-unions-prepare-to-fight-sweeping-reclassification-orders","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/federal-employee-unions-prepare-to-fight-sweeping-reclassification-orders","title":{"rendered":"Federal Employee Unions Prepare to Fight Sweeping Reclassification Orders"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Within less than a week of taking office, President Trump has taken a wrecking ball to key areas of the federal government, sparking outrage and fear among public sector unions and career civil servants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Everett Kelley, national president of the American Federation of Government Employees<\/a> (AFGE), which represents 800,000 federal and D.C. government workers, said the union\u2019s members are deeply concerned about those Executive Orders. \u201cThis unprecedented assertion of executive power will create an army of sycophants beholden only to Donald Trump, not the Constitution or the American people,\u201d said Kelley. \u201cEvery American has a stake in ensuring that federal employees remain free to carry out the mission of the agencies that employ them without fear of political interference.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

RECLASSIFICATION THREAT TO HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF WORKERS<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The most alarming development is Trump\u2019s executive order aimed at reclassifying federal workers, making it easier to fire them without cause. This order undermines the long-standing protections that allow federal employees to serve the public free from political interference.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The National Treasury Employees Union<\/a> (NTEU), representing 150,000 federal workers across 37 agencies, has filed a lawsuit against the administration to block the order. The union argues that the order unjustly imposes rules meant for political appointees onto career civil servants, threatening the impartiality and stability of government operations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The United States\u2019 2.2 million federal employees are primarily career public servants, hired based on merit to ensure continuity and nonpartisan service across administrations. Civil service rules, which have been a cornerstone of good governance for decades, ensure these employees cannot be dismissed without just cause. Trump\u2019s order seeks to strip these protections by creating a new classification, \u201cSchedule Policy\/Career,\u201d which would reclassify potentially hundreds of thousands of workers and expose them to at-will termination.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis is an egregious attempt to politicize the federal workforce,\u201d said Don Moynihan, a professor at the Ford School of Public Policy at the University of Michigan. He warned that the order is so broad that nearly everyone involved in any aspect of policymaking\u2014essentially most federal employees\u2014could be affected.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The concept is not new. At the end of Trump\u2019s first term, he issued a similar directive, known as Schedule F, which President Biden rescinded on his first day in office in 2021. At the time, Schedule F was estimated to place at least 50,000 federal workers at risk of losing their jobs. Experts believe the new order could have an even greater impact, affecting hundreds of thousands of public servants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

UNIONS FIGHT BACK<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Unions representing federal workers are rallying to protect their members and the institutions they serve. Public sector unions have long been a bulwark against the politicization of government, and they are now on the front lines, fighting to preserve a civil service system that puts the public interest above political loyalty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

AFGE members are gathering in Washington, D.C. next month for the union\u2019s annual legislative conference and will meet with members of Congress to discuss the Trump administration\u2019s policies and pieces of legislation targeting federal employees. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

\u201cThis is not just an attack on federal workers,\u201d said Kelley. \u201cIt\u2019s an attack on the American people, who rely on a stable and impartial government to serve their needs.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

The union lawsuits and mobilization efforts highlight the critical role labor unions play in safeguarding workers\u2019 rights and ensuring government accountability. As the battle intensifies, federal employees and their unions remain united, determined to protect the civil service from this unprecedented power grab.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Through the use of emerging engagement technologies, union leaders have the ability to connect with their members directly to help protect these federal workers and their families. Tools like UnionTrack ENGAGE<\/a> help connect and engage your members when messaging counts now more than ever.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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