By Melanie Sun
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is ending all contracts with unionized employees, a union president said on Aug. 8.
Justin Chen, president of the EPA’s chapter of the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE)—the United States’ largest federal union—said in a statement that the union is preparing legal action in response to the contract terminations.
About half of the EPA’s 16,000 employees are members of the union.
The AFGE was formed to strengthen the collective bargaining position of civil servants, and it represents more than 820,000 federal and District of Columbia government workers.
In March, the Trump administration announced a new policy to exclude employees at federal agencies with national security missions from federal labor-management relations programs.
President Donald Trump said in the executive order that “Chapter 71 of title 5, United States Code, cannot be applied to these agencies and agency subdivisions in a manner consistent with national security requirements and considerations.”
About 13 federal departments and agencies, including the EPA, were listed as among those “determined to have as a primary function intelligence, counterintelligence, investigative, or national security work.”
“EPA is working to diligently implement President Trump’s Executive Orders with respect to AFGE, including ‘Exclusions from Federal Labor-Management Relations Programs’, in compliance with the law,” an EPA spokesperson said in a statement.
The White House stated in a fact sheet that allowing government workers to unionize “enables hostile Federal unions to obstruct agency management” and that certain federal unions have “declared war on President Trump’s agenda.”
It noted that the AFGE had described itself as “fighting back“ against Trump and that it has filed many grievances to “block Trump policies.”
“Protecting America’s national security is a core constitutional duty, and President Trump refuses to let union obstruction interfere with his efforts to protect Americans and our national interests,” the White House stated.
“President Trump supports constructive partnerships with unions who work with him; he will not tolerate mass obstruction that jeopardizes his ability to manage agencies with vital national security missions.”
Trump’s order was an expansion on President Jimmy Carter’s Executive Order 12171 signed on Nov. 19, 1979, which has since been amended by subsequent presidents to update agency exclusions.
Court Challenges
Unions are currently challenging the presidential directive in court, arguing that it violates free speech and employer obligations to bargain with workers. According to attorneys representing federal workers, the ban on union membership would also allow agencies to more easily fire or discipline employees.
A federal appeals court said in an emergency stay on Aug. 1 that the administration could move forward with exempting certain federal agencies from their obligation to negotiate with unions. The AFGE is a plaintiff in that lawsuit.
The EPA announced in July that it intends to cut its workforce by about 23 percent and close its research and development office as part of the Trump administration’s restructuring efforts to reduce federal spending and debt.
“This reduction in force will ensure we can better fulfill that mission while being responsible stewards of your hard-earned tax dollars,” EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin said at the time.
A critic of the decision, Rep. Valerie Foushee (D-N.C.), said the EPA is “vital to understanding and addressing environmental risks.”
The agency had previously said it was working to enhance scientific and research efforts within program offices to address its “statutory obligations and mission essential functions,” particularly within its air, water, and chemical offices.
Aldgra Fredly, Katabella Roberts, and Reuters contributed to this article.
