President Trump has cut 17 percent of the federal workforce since his second term began, eliminating centuries of experience in science, law, and medicine while politicizing nonpartisan roles, according to reporting on federal agencies.
Embattled workers are now turning to Democrats following the midterm elections. However, competing legislative priorities like health care, affordability, and the war in Iran mean reversals for federal employees might take time, as a Democratic-led Congress faces limits while President Trump remains in office.
“We’re playing a long game here while we’re trying to prevent and undo as much damage as possible in the short term,” Representative James Walkinshaw told reporters regarding the strategy of the Congressional Federal Workforce Caucus.
Walkinshaw, a Democrat representing a Northern Virginia district with many current and former federal employees, helped create the caucus earlier this year. He said that while further administration attacks are expected, lawmakers now possess constitutional and legal authority to push back.
Meanwhile, the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) has outlined priorities for the newly empowered Congress, urging lawmakers to overturn executive orders that eliminated collective bargaining rights for over a million workers. “Our Nation’s Civil Servants Work with dignity and honor to serve the American Public and stripping them of fundamental Workplace Rights and Protections was an egregious wrongdoing that must be corrected,” AFGE National President Everett Kelley said.
Did You Know? The House passed bipartisan legislation to restore collective bargaining rights nearly a year ago, but the Senate previously refused to bring the measure to a vote.
Lawmakers face a tight deadline during the lame-duck session as none of the 12 appropriations bills have been approved for the fiscal year that started on October 1st. Agencies are currently operating under a continuing resolution that expires on December 11th, requiring Congress to pass budget bills or extend funding to avert a shutdown.
During these budget negotiations, the AFGE is pressing lawmakers to override a proposed pay freeze and secure a 3.8 percent raise for federal workers, matching increases designated for military service members and civilian law enforcement officers. “Federal Employees treat our Veterans and support our military, safeguard our food and air, process retirement and disability payments for tens of millions of Americans every month, and so much more,” Kelley said.
The Trump administration has sheared 17 percent of federal workers since the start of the president’s second term, cutting experience across medicine, law, and science.
Congress has not approved any of the 12 appropriations bills for the fiscal year that began on October 1st, leaving most agencies operating under a continuing resolution that expires on December 11th.
The AFGE is urging Congress to pass legislation overturning orders that eliminated collective bargaining rights, override a proposed pay freeze for a 3.8 percent raise, and restore full collective bargaining rights for Department of Defense workers through the National Defense Authorization Act.
How will the incoming congressional majority balance competing legislative demands like healthcare and affordability against the urgent push to rebuild the federal civil service?
Worth a look