The Trump administration has severed contracts with a handful of unions for federal employees. It’s the latest development to come from an executive order action in March that removed collective bargaining rights for more than a million federal workers at more than 24 agencies.
The order excludes agencies from the Civil Service Reform Act — which allows federal unions to negotiate for improved working conditions. It argues that process is a threat to national security — though the order doesn’t apply to law enforcement agencies like Border Patrol.
Those impacted include the Bureau of Land Management, Health and Human Services, the VA and others.
This month, local unions representing Department of Homeland Security agencies like FEMA and Citizenship and Immigration Services received word their contracts had been canceled.
In an Aug. 8 email reviewed by KJZZ, an associate director with USCIS says "effective immediately," the agency is terminating its contract with the American Federation of Government Employees Council 119, which represents asylum officers and other USCIS workers.
Local councils representing employees at the EPA and the VA say they've also had their contracts severed.
A spokesperson with the American Federation of Government Employees said it's evaluating next steps and that union members remain protected. The union filed suit against the order in April on behalf of its local councils.
-
Under the proposed changes, there’d be a cap on how much money Head Start centers could spend on administrative overhead; there would also be a reduction in the number of regulations governing the program, among other changes. -
Right now, nearly Arizona 300 schools qualify for a federal program that allows schools that serve low income households to give free lunches to every student — without making them apply for it. -
It's also unclear how many have lost coverage because some state agencies that run the programs are overwhelmed trying to keep up with changes. That was the case in Arizona, which saw the nation's largest enrollment drop. -
Nearly 1,800 formerly homeless Arizonans could be at risk of losing shelter as the Trump administration seeks a major overhaul of federal funding for homelessness programs. -
FEMA has awarded about $700,000 to Arizona and the Havasupai Tribe to fund hazard mitigation projects. The money came from a program the federal agency had nixed but was reinstated by the courts earlier this year.
