John,
As we take today to celebrate Labor Day with our friends and family, we cannot forget that this day was brought to us by workers who fought to secure the 40-hour work week, a minimum wage, and the right to unionize our workplaces to advocate for better wages and protections.
The attacks on unions persist, with a new Trump onslaught just days before the Labor Day holiday. Again showing his contempt for federal workers, Trump announced the termination of collective bargaining rights for federal workers at NASA, weather and environmental services, patent services, and more.1 These pronouncements added to Trump’s March executive order attempting to strip nearly one million federal workers of their right to collectively bargain. According to the AFL-CIO, that order was the single biggest act of union-busting in American history.2
In his first 100 days of his second term, President Trump launched an assault on American workers. According to the Economic Policy Institute, his administration took 100 actions in 100 days to undermine wages, workplace safety, and labor rights.3 And the brunt of those attacks were on unions representing federal workers.
In response, Democratic leaders in the House of Representatives have launched a discharge petition to force a vote on the bipartisan Protect America’s Workforce Act.
The bill would overturn Trump’s executive orders that stripped collective bargaining rights from federal workers. A discharge petition would allow the bill to bypass committees and bring it directly to the floor for a vote, where it already has enough co-sponsors to pass.
Send a message to Congress demanding they sign the discharge petition and bring the Protect America’s Workforce Act to a vote.
SEND A MESSAGE
Under Trump’s executive order, employees at more than 30 federal agencies would lose their collective bargaining rights.4 Some of these agencies include the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Food and Drug Administration, the Office of Refugee Resettlement, and the Administration for Children and Families.
These same agencies are already under harsh attack due to the Trump administration summarily firing tens of thousands of employees. Without collective bargaining, the employees who keep their jobs will be left in an even more precarious situation.
The AFL-CIO released a statement:5
“That executive order is not just an attack on federal workers or unions -- but an attack on all of us, as the labor movement is one of the most essential xxxxxxs against authoritarianism. Ensuring that federal workers have access to a voice on the job is critical to an efficient and effective federal government. Worker voices, backed up by union representation, blow whistles on unlawful or wasteful activity and establish workplace rules that ensure safety and fair treatment. Taxpayers, including the communities that rely upon services delivered by federal workers, are better served when those workers have a voice.”
We need every member of Congress who supports America’s workforce to sign the discharge petition to get the bill on the House floor right away.
The working people who fuel the American economy, including the veterans who make up a third of the federal workforce, need a union to protect them—and us along with them.
Join us in calling on Congress to sign the discharge petition and bring the Protect America’s Workers Act to a vote.
Thank you for all you do,
Deborah Weinstein
Executive Director, CHN Action
P.S. CHN Action is proud to be a co-sponsor of today’s Workers Over Billionaires Labor Day rallies. Click here to find one near you today.
1 Trump orders more agencies to nix collective bargaining agreements
2 ACTION ALERT: We Have the Votes to Restore Federal Workers’ Union Rights
3 100 ways Trump has hurt workers in his first 100 days
4 Executive Order on “Exclusions from Federal Labor-Management Relations Programs”
5 Letter Supporting Discharge and Passage of the Protect America’s Workforce Act
