‘Trump and Musk are setting the example’: how companies are becoming emboldened to be more anti-union

As the White House carries out an anti-worker agenda, labor leaders fear corporate America could also grow more hostile

Donald Trump's aggressive wave of anti-union actions is already spurring some US employers to take a more hostile stance toward unions, as labor leaders voice fears that the president's moves will embolden more and more companies to fight harder against unions and slow their recent progress.

Indeed, some worker advocates worry that unions will be walloped during Trump's second term the way they were under Ronald Reagan after he crushed the 1981 air traffic controllers' strike and inspired many corporations to fight harder against unions. As Trump and Elon Musk carry out their anti-union agenda in Washington DC, Utah passed a law that prohibits collective bargaining by public sector workers, and a Michigan company refused to move forward with a union election.