Trump Expands Federal Union Rollbacks, Labor’s Response Draws Sharp Criticism

Overview

• New commentary highlights that the administration added the Patent Office, NASA and the National Weather Service to its list of targeted agencies just before Labor Day.
• At the Department of Veterans Affairs alone, roughly 400,000 employees have lost collective bargaining rights, part of a broader rollback affecting hundreds of thousands of federal workers.
• The criticism centers on unions’ limited public pushback, with commentators noting the absence of large-scale mobilization or a coordinated campaign to defend federal bargaining rights.
• Internal divisions complicate the response, including the Teamsters’ 2024 endorsement of President Trump and references to Teamsters president Sean O’Brien’s pro-Trump stance.
• Erik Loomis urges unions to call out pro-Trump leaders, engage members in sustained political education and revive mass mobilization, pointing to high public approval for unions as a missed opening.