Democratic, Republican Lawmakers Call on Trump to Repeal EO Stripping Feds of Collective Bargaining Rights

Lawmakers from both sides of the aisle are calling on President Trump to rescind his illegal executive order stripping federal workers of their collective bargaining rights under the guise of national security.

A group of seven Republican lawmakers led by Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.) sent a letter to Trump calling on him to repeal his March 27 executive order. Rep. Fitzpatrick and his Democratic counterpart Rep. Jared Golden (D-Maine) also introduced a bill to protect workers’ rights to collectively bargain.

“We support efforts to improve government efficiency—but applying sweeping national security exemptions to agencies like SSA, FCC, GSA, and HHS risks doing more harm than good. These agencies are vital to public service. Undermining collective bargaining in these spaces weakens morale, accountability, and performance,” Fitzpatrick said via post on X. “That’s why, alongside this letter, I introduced the Protect America’s Workforce Act with @RepGolden. This bipartisan bill restores a responsible, targeted approach—preserving bargaining rights and reinforcing the role that the worker’s voice plays in strengthening government. We don’t have to choose between security and fairness. We can—and must—protect both.”

The bill was co-sponsored by Reps. Donald Norcross (D-N.J.), Mark Pocan (D-Wis.), Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.), Nick LaLota (R-N.Y.), Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.), and Mike Turner (R-Ohio).

In the Senate, Connecticut Democratic senators Chris Murphy and Richard Blumenthal joined the entire Senate Democratic Caucus to urge Trump to rescind his illegal executive order, saying the EO is a blatant misuse of “a limited authority”.

“We write today in outrage over your recent executive order entitled Exclusions from Federal Labor-Management Relations Programs, a gross overreach of the authority granted in the Civil Service Reform Act of 1978 (CSRA). This order is an insult to the hardworking public servants who go to work on behalf of the American people,” the senators wrote. “There is no evidence that the long-standing collective bargaining agreements at these agencies have jeopardized our nation’s security in any way; to the contrary, the protection collective bargaining has provided for employees allows them to conduct their work on behalf of the American people—including blowing the whistle on fraud or abuse—without political interference.”

AFGE commends the lawmakers for standing up for federal workers and their fundamental union rights.

“Federal employees have had the right to join a union and bargain collectively for decades, under both Republican and Democratic administrations,” said AFGE President Everett Kelley. “Collective bargaining benefits the public because it helps resolve workplace conflicts early on – avoiding costly and disruptive litigation – while improving employee morale and retention. Without union representation, employees – especially whistleblowers and veterans – lose vital protections from retaliation and political interference.”

“Federal workers, nearly a third of whom are veterans, dedicate their lives to serving our nation every day with honor and pride,” he added. “President Trump’s executive order stripping patriotic citizens serving their country of their union rights isn’t just wrong and un-American, it weakens workplace safety, morale, and effectiveness inside our government and harms the public through diminished services.”