Trump’s attack on federal unions a ‘test case’ for broader assault, warn lawyers

Executive order cites national security to strip bargaining rights from more than 1 million federal workers

The Trump administration is seeking to strip collective bargaining rights from large swaths of federal employees in a test case union leaders argue is part of a broader attack on US labor unions that could land before the US Supreme Court.

A Trump win would deliver a severe blow to labor unions in the US. Some 29.9% of all federal workers were represented by labor unions in 2024 compared to 11.1% for all US workers.