IFPTE Federal Sector Update on Trump/Musk and DOGE Attacks on Federal Workers - Week Ending March 14
IFPTE Local Officers and Members, International executive officers and staff, along with our Union partners at the Federal Workers Alliance (FWA) and the AFL-CIO, continue to work in coalition on all fronts – Legal, Legislative, Grassroots, PR – to fight against the illegal and unprecedented attacks by President Trump, the so-called DOGE, including Elon Musk and his associates, and larger Trump Administration, against federal workers and the agencies they work for.
Here is the latest:
Legislative:
· IFPTE legislative director Faraz Khan, along with IFPTE Local members and leaders, had several in-person and virtual meetings over the weekend and throughout the week with Congressional lawmakers and staff. The meeting’s primary focus was and continues to be to urge Congress to defund the implementation of the Trump/Musk agenda to dismantle the federal government and fire government workers, including those represented by IFPTE. IFPTE staff also continued conversations with House and Senate offices to make sure offices understand wy
· Last weekend, IFPTE worked with House Democrat offices on several amendments that were offered to the House Rules Committee to be made in order and considered as a part of the House Continuing Resolution (CR) that was considered and ultimately passed on a partisan vote on Tuesday. The amendments, which were wholeheartedly endorsed by IFPTE, were ultimately rejected by the Republican-dominated House Rules Committee. The amendments offered and denied were:
Rep. Hoyer (D-MD) and Rep. Beyer’s (D-VA) amendment to prohibit Reductions in Force (RIF) actions unless allowed by Congress.
Rep. McIver (D-NJ) and Rep. McGarvey’s (D-KY) amendment to reinstate probationary employees who have been illegitimately fired by the Trump Administration’s mass termination directives.
Rep. Connolly (D-VA) and Rep. Beyer’s (D-VA) amendment to prohibit funding for implementation of the Trump Administration’s Schedule P/C (previously called Schedule F), a new employment classification that removes competitive hiring and merit principles, and turns large swaths of the apolitical civil service into a partisan workforce.
Grassroots – IFPTE sponsors and participates in “Let Us Work” mass call in
- The “Let Us Work” national call-in occurred on Thursday in which tens of thousands of federal workers, their family members and allies participated in on Thursday evening. The call-in event was hosted by FUN, a community of federal employees and organizers from Unions across the federal sector which was formed in 2023 and has hosted several mass actions and rallies across the nation since the Trump/Musk Administration took aim at federal workers. The “Let Us Work” event is part of a larger effort to move forward a mass nationwide campaign to stop the DOGE attacks on federal workers. The call-in was sponsored by and participated in by IFPTE, AFGE, NFFE-IAMAW, the AFL-CIO. Connecticut Senator Chris Murphy, and former Labor Secretary Robert Reich were among the speakers. See the full event here.
Legal:
IFPTE RIF Guidance to Locals
A memo regarding Reductions-In-Force (RIFs) and mass terminations of Federal Employees was sent to all IFPTE Federal Locals this week. See the memo here.
Meanwhile, OPM issued a memo on Thursday instructing agencies to largely ignore RIF language in Union negotiated CBA’s. IFPTE is recommending that Locals file grievances if management refuses to abide negotiated RIF language in their respective CBAs.
Latest News on Lawsuits:
1. Federal Judge upholds AFGE complaint and reinstates fired probationary workers – On Thursday, in a case brought in the Northern District of California, Federal District Judge Alsup ordered the immediate reinstatement of 24,000 illegally fired federal employees at several agencies In doing so, Judge Alsup stated “It’s a sad, sad day when our government would fire a good employee and say it’s based on performance when they know good and well that is based on a lie.” Judge Alsup’s decision comes a day after Acting OPM Director refused to appear in Court to defend OPM’s illegal firings. See the full GovExec article here.
2. Yesterday evening, in a similar case brought by 19 state attorneys general, a federal judge for the District of Maryland granted a 14-day temporary restraining order (TRO) against the Trump administration and ordered the reinstatement of thousands of illegally fired federal probationary employees, also barring the administration from conducting further mass firings in violation of the law.
3. On March 12, 2025, Susan Grundmann was returned to the FLRA in her case against her illegal removal in D.C. District Court.
4. The government has appealed to the D.C. Circuit the lower district court order of the return to work of NLRB Member Gwynne Wilcox and MSPB Member Cathy Harris. Arguments have not yet been scheduled in these cases.
5. We will keep you updated on movement in the lawsuits in which IFPTE is a named plaintiff – one led by Protect Democracy against DOGE for violations of the Privacy Act and one led by NTEU to protect probationary workers. In the meantime, the status of all other lawsuits against DOGE and the Trump administration can be viewed at Just Security “Litigation Tracker: Legal Challenges to Trump Administration Actions.”
Public Relations
IFPTE continues to work with the AFL-CIO, the Federal Workers Alliance and non-labor allies to fight back against the assault on the federal sector and the impending collapse of vital services that IFPTE members and other civil servants provide every day in every state. Right now IFPTE is working with a coalition of unions to coordinate fields actions that will highlight the loss of those services and hold DOGE responsible.
In addition, IFPTE is initiating additional ways of keeping federal sector workers informed about how the assault is impacting them, their agencies and their families. A new “clips” service that IFPTE offered in recent weeks has proven popular, and anyone interested in receiving these updates can sign up with this online form. Clips are usually delivered every 1-2 days and focus on issues like union efforts to fight the assault on the civil service, court actions related to federal workers’ rights, and guidance for members who are facing wrongful termination or other unlawful targeted activities.