March 28 (UPI) — Thousands of federal workers may lose the right to unionize after President Donald Trump signed an executive order that would ban employees in several departments and agencies from doing so.
“Covered agencies and subdivisions are no longer subject to the collective-bargaining requirements,” reads the memo sent by the U.S. Office of Personnel Management to the heads of the affected agencies.
Trump cited a section of the Federal Service Labor-Management Relations Statute in issuing the executive order, arguing agencies with national security as their primary purpose can be made exempt from collective bargaining.
“The President may issue an order excluding any agency or subdivision thereof from coverage under this chapter if the President determines that — the agency or subdivision has as a primary function intelligence, counterintelligence, investigative or national security work,” reads a part of the statute cited by trump.
In total, 18 federal departments and multiple agencies underneath them are subject to the order.
All agencies falling under the Department of Homeland Security, Department of Defense, State Department, Treasury, Department of Health and Human Services and Department of Veterans Affairs are included.
“Consequently, those agencies and subdivisions are no longer required to collectively bargain with Federal unions,” states the memo.
The directive also orders the federal agencies to end all current employee grievance proceedings and informs them that they are “no longer required to collectively bargain with Federal unions.”
Pushback from union management came swiftly following the late-night executive order Thursday.
The American Federation of Government Employees said it is readying for “immediate legal action” in response.
“President Trump’s latest executive order is a disgraceful and retaliatory attack on the rights of hundreds of thousands of patriotic American civil servants-nearly one-third of whom are veterans-simply because they are members of a union that stands up to his harmful policies, AFGE National President Everett Kelley said in a statement on the union’s website.
“This administration’s bullying tactics represent a clear threat not just to federal employees and their unions, but to every American who values democracy and the freedoms of speech and association.
“Trump’s threat to unions and working people across America is clear: fall in line or else. These threats will not work. Americans will not be intimidated or silenced. AFGE isn’t going anywhere.
“Our members have bravely served this nation, often putting themselves in harm’s way, and they deserve far better than this blatant attempt at political punishment.”