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Shaun Southworth leading a federal employment training session with members of the Southworth PC team
 

TSA Union Contracts and the Risk of Agency Whiplash

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Federal employees expect their workplace rights to operate like guardrails—not like a light switch that flips on and off depending on who is in charge. Yet Transportation Security ...

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Can Congress Restore Federal Union Rights in 2025?

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Federal employees across several agencies felt the shift almost immediately this year: bargaining tables went quiet, contracts suddenly felt fragile, and management decisions began...

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Federal Unions After the Discharge Petition: What This Means for You

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For the first time in years, a bipartisan majority of the House has signed a discharge petition forcing a vote on the Protect America’s Workforce Act—legislation aimed at undoing t...

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NASA Union Rights Lawsuit Tests Presidential Power

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Last week, the International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers (IFPTE) filed a second lawsuit against the administration—this time over NASA. In March, the Preside...

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Judge Blocks Trump Order Stripping Federal Union Rights

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On September 30, 2025, federal employees won an important reprieve. Judge Paul Friedman of the U.S. District Court for D.C. issued a preliminary injunction blocking the Trump admin...

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NASA’s New “Spy Agency” Label and Federal Employee Rights

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At the end of August, the President signed an executive order that reclassified several science and service agencies — including NASA, the National Weather Service, and parts of th...

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VA Unions Press to Restore Bargaining Rights Amid Staffing Crisis

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On September 5, leaders from seven major unions—including AFGE’s National VA Council—sent a joint letter to VA Secretary Doug Collins. Their request was urgent: use authority under...

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Ninth Circuit May Halt Union Contract Cancellations

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In recent weeks, some federal agencies have moved aggressively to cancel collective bargaining agreements (CBAs). For employees, this has felt like the ground shifting under their ...

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Ninth Circuit Ruling Revives Trump-Era Union Limits

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A significant legal shift occurred last Friday. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals temporarily lifted a lower court’s injunction that had been protecting federal employees’ collect...

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D.C. Circuit Ruling Threatens Union Rights for Federal Workers

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On July 16, 2025, the D.C. Circuit Court allowed President Trump’s executive order to take effect, redefining more than 30 federal agencies as “national-security” operations. While...

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Court Blocks Executive Order Targeting Federal Unions

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A significant legal development is offering breathing room for thousands of federal workers: a federal judge has issued a preliminary injunction halting parts of an executive order...

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Two Federal Rulings Halt Trump's Anti-Union Order—For Now

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In a major turn for federal employees, two court rulings have temporarily stalled the Trump administration’s efforts to strip away collective bargaining rights from large portions ...

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Shaun Southworth & Lydia Taylor

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