Justin Cassera is a student at Harvard Law School.
In today’s news and commentary, President Trump signs an executive order purporting to end unionization at numerous federal agencies; a court temporarily allows removal of NLRB members; and ICE detains a farmworker union leader.
On Thursday, President Trump signed an executive order instructing numerous federal agencies to end collective bargaining with government employee unions. Citing national security concerns, the administration also filed a lawsuit in federal court seeking permission to rescind active collective bargaining agreements covering roughly 700,000 workers. Unions have characterized these moves as unlawful and vowed to challenge them in court. This comes in response to a flurry of organizing activity and lawsuits filed by unions challenging cuts by the Department of Government Efficiency. Several private sector unions have expressed solidarity with the federal workers.
On Friday, a three-judge panel for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit temporarily halted the reinstatement of NLRB member Gwynne Wilcox, who was recently fired by the Trump administration. While the dispute is expected to reach the Supreme Court, this decision leaves the NLRB without quorum and severely limits its ability to function. The Circuit Court’s action comes in the wake of a letter to Congress by the Trump administration disavowing Humphrey’s Executor, a 90-year-old Supreme Court case that restricts the President’s power to fire heads of independent agencies without cause. Wilcox’s lawyers say the firing is a threat to precedent which protects “the independence of critical government agencies,” and express confidence in their ability to prevail in the Supreme Court.
Last week, Immigration and Customs Enforcement detained Alfredo (“Lelo”) Juarez Zeferino, a 25-year old farmworker activist in Washington. Zeferino has lived in the United States for thirteen years. He has been a volunteer organizer for food justice initiative Community to Community since he was twelve and is currently a union member farmworker for Familias Unidas por la Justicia. There is no evidence of criminal activity. A number of protests have been held in recent days as part of an outpouring of community support. The Bellingham Herald, a local news outlet, says it is “highly likely Zeferino is enrolled in DACA,” which provides a path to citizenship.
Daily News & Commentary
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November 23
Workers at the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority vote to authorize a strike; Washington State legislators consider a bill empowering public employees to bargain over workplace AI implementation; and University of California workers engage in a two-day strike.
November 21
The “Big Three” record labels make a deal with an AI music streaming startup; 30 stores join the now week-old Starbucks Workers United strike; and the Mine Safety and Health Administration draws scrutiny over a recent worker death.
November 20
Law professors file brief in Slaughter; New York appeals court hears arguments about blog post firing; Senate committee delays consideration of NLRB nominee.
November 19
A federal judge blocks the Trump administration’s efforts to cancel the collective bargaining rights of workers at the U.S. Agency for Global Media; Representative Jared Golden secures 218 signatures for a bill that would repeal a Trump administration executive order stripping federal workers of their collective bargaining rights; and Dallas residents sue the City of Dallas in hopes of declaring hundreds of ordinances that ban bias against LGBTQ+ individuals void.
November 18
A federal judge pressed DOJ lawyers to define “illegal” DEI programs; Peco Foods prevails in ERISA challenge over 401(k) forfeitures; D.C. court restores collective bargaining rights for Voice of America workers; Rep. Jared Golden secures House vote on restoring federal workers' union rights.
November 17
Justices receive petition to resolve FLSA circuit split, vaccine religious discrimination plaintiffs lose ground, and NJ sues Amazon over misclassification.