House lawmakers are making a push to restore collective bargaining for federal employees after an executive order canceled union contracts across a large number of agencies last week.

The bipartisan Protect America’s Workforce Act, introduced on Tuesday, aims to bring back collective bargaining for all agencies impacted by President Donald Trump’s order. If enacted, the legislation would effectively reverse Trump’s actions, which terminated a majority of agencies’ collective bargaining agreements, citing national security concerns.

Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.), one of the original co-sponsors of the new bill, said the legislation would pivot the administration toward a more “responsible, targeted approach” to improving government efficiency.

“We support efforts to improve government efficiency, but applying sweeping national security exemptions to agencies risks doing more harm than good,” Fitzpatrick said. “These agencies are vital to public service. Undermining collective bargaining in these spaces weakens morale, accountability and performance.”

In an April 1 letter addressed to Trump, Fitzpatrick and several other House Republicans called on the President to reconsider his recent actions against federal unions, as well as the collective bargaining abilities of federal employees.

“Collective bargaining has traditionally played a positive role by providing a structured channel for communication and addressing employee concerns, which ultimately supports a more productive and stable workforce and thereby promotes national security,” the eight lawmakers wrote. “We share your goal of streamlining federal operations and ensuring agencies function effectively. However, we respectfully suggest a more targeted and deliberate approach.”

The White House did not respond to a request for comment on the legislation.

Federal unions quickly expressed support for the bill and called on the Trump administration to reverse course.

“President Trump’s executive order is blatantly illegal and unconstitutional,” said Randy Erwin, national president of the National Federation of Federal Employees. “It is clear from this legislation that even lawmakers from the President’s own party recognize that ending collective bargaining for workers is indefensible.”

The American Federation of Government Employees warned that the executive order will ultimately harm the public by worsening conditions for federal employees, and therefore, impacting federal services. AFGE also pointed to the decades-long precedent of many federal employees’ ability to join unions and collectively bargain.

“Collective bargaining benefits the public because it helps resolve workplace conflicts early on, avoiding costly and disruptive litigation, while improving employee morale and retention,” AFGE National President Everett Kelley said. “Without union representation, employees — especially whistleblowers and veterans — lose vital protections from retaliation and political interference.”

Senate Democrats also criticized the executive order. The full Senate Democratic Caucus wrote a letter to Trump on Wednesday, calling his order a “gross overreach.”

“The executive order effectively classifies two-thirds of the federal workforce as having national security missions, a blatant misuse of a limited authority intended to provide operational flexibility to address legitimate security needs,” the Democrats wrote. “Federal employees’ collective bargaining agreements are critical to ensuring they continue to serve the American people with the peace of mind that comes with being protected from unfair labor practices.”

Although the 1978 Civil Service Reform Act mainly broadened the rights for federal employees to unionize and collectively bargain, it also included a narrow stipulation that a President can exclude agencies from collective bargaining if “the agency has a primary function of intelligence, counterintelligence, investigative or national security work, and the provisions of this chapter cannot be applied to that agency or subdivision in a manner consistent with national security requirements and considerations.”

Trump cited that specific authority from the 1978 statute, arguing it allows him to cancel collective bargaining for national security purposes.

“President Trump supports constructive partnerships with unions who work with him,” a White House fact sheet stated. “He will not tolerate mass obstruction that jeopardizes his ability to manage agencies with vital national security missions.”

Doreen Greenwald, national president of the National Treasury Employees Union, called Trump’s interpretation of the provision “absurdly broad.” The executive order covers a number of agencies with employees that NTEU represents, including those at the IRS, Environmental Protection Agency, and Department of Health and Human Services.

“The law plainly gives federal employees the right to bargain collectively and the shocking executive order abolishing that right for most of them, under the guise of national security, is an attempt to silence the voices of our nation’s public servants,” Greenwald said. “It is also a continuation of the administration’s efforts to deny the American people the vital services that these talented civil servants provide by making it easier to fire them without any pushback from their union advocates.”

In response to the executive order, NTEU filed a lawsuit earlier this week arguing that the order violates the 1978 Civil Service Reform Act. AFGE and NFFE have also both vowed to take legal action against the Trump administration’s actions.

The White House did not respond to a request for comment on the litigation.

NTEU’s lawsuit alleges that none of the agencies that are impacted by the executive order have “a primary function of intelligence, counterintelligence, investigative or national security work.”

“The [administration’s] true goal is to fire as many federal employees as possible, weaken federal agencies, and retaliate against federal sector unions,” Greenwald said.

Unlike typical union agreements in the private sector, federal unions are already limited in their collective bargaining abilities. Federal unions, by law, generally cannot negotiate over pay, benefits or job classifications — and instead can only negotiate over matters related to “working conditions.” Federal employees are also unable to strike.

The Trump administration has taken other recent actions attempting to limit federal unions’ roles. The administration has said collective bargaining agreements should be ignored as agencies move forward with reductions in force (RIFs) and returning federal employees to the office full-time. Trump also signed an executive order in February to cancel collective bargaining agreements signed within the last month of the Biden administration.

If you would like to contact this reporter about recent changes in the federal government, please email drew.friedman@federalnewsnetwork.com or reach out on Signal at drewfriedman.11

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