Weekly Labor Roundup - February 10, 2025
The union representing the National Treasury employees has filed two lawsuits against the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s acting director Russell Vought after Vought halted much of the bureau’s work. The lawsuits seek to block the Department of Government Efficiency from accessing employee information and to block Vought’s directives to shut down the activity of the bureau.
Unions representing government employees, particularly federal employees, are experiencing unprecedented growth in the wake of the Trump administration’s attacks on federal employees. The American Federation of Government Employees has added over 14,000 members to their ranks in the past five weeks alone. The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees grew by tens of thousands last year.
The National Labor Relations Board is currently unable to function, following President Trump’s firing of Gwynne Wilcox last month. The agency protects the rights of American workers and oversees union elections. Wilcox is suing Trump, arguing that he exceeded his authority in firing her and seeking to be reinstated at the NLRB.
Trump’s pick for labor secretary, Lori Chavez-DeRemer, gains the support of labor leaders such as the American Federation of Teachers’ president Randi Weingarten and Sean O’Brien, president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters.
The Utah legislature banned collective bargaining for teachers and other public sector employees, in one of the most restrictive labor laws in the country. Under the bill, state employees could still join unions, but unions could no longer formally negotiate on their behalf for better wages and working conditions.
