Golden & Labor Movement Achieve Bipartisan Majority, Force Vote to Restore Federal Workers’ Union Rights
A discharge petition on the Protect America’s Workforce Act (H.R. 2550), co-sponsored by Maine Congressman Jared Golden, reached 218 signatures this week, mandating the House of Representatives vote on restoring union rights to federal workers by next week after months of delay by Speaker Mike Johnson.
The Protect America’s Workforce Act of 2025, which has enough cosponsors to indicate it would easily pass a floor vote, has languished since Golden introduced it with Republican Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (PA-01) in April. In June, Golden launched a discharge petition for the bill, which allows a majority of the House to force a vote on a piece of legislation if a majority of Congress signs it. On Monday, GOP Congressmen Nick LaLota (NY-01) and Mike Lawler (NY-17) signed the petition, bringing the total number of signatures to 218 — the number required to force House action.
“America never voted to eliminate workers’ union rights, and the strong bipartisan support for my bill shows that Congress will not stand idly by while President Trump nullifies federal workers’ collective bargaining agreements and rolls back generations of labor law,” Golden said. “I’m grateful to Reps. LaLota and Lawler for bringing this discharge petition over the finish line, and I’m calling on Speaker Mike Johnson to schedule a clean, up-or-down vote on this bill.”
The bill would nullify President Trump’s March 27th Executive Order ending collective bargaining rights for roughly 1 million unionized federal employees across several agencies. Since Golden introduced the bipartisan bill in April, it has garnered bipartisan support from 222 members of Congress, including seven Republicans. Five of those Republicans — Reps. Fitzpatrick, LaLota, Lawler, Don Bacon (NE-02) and Robert Bresnahan (PA-08) — crossed the aisle to join House Democrats in signing the discharge petition.
"It is unconscionable that the Trump administration has illegally stripped thousands of federal employees of their right to bargain for fair treatment and safe working conditions. The President's executive order is a lawless attack on federal public servants providing crucial services to our nation, from servicing Navy submarines and caring for our veterans to providing Social Security benefits to older Mainers, surviving families and people with disabilities,” said Cynthia Phinney, President of the Maine AFL-CIO. “We are thrilled that Congressman Jared Golden has been able to collect enough signatures to force a vote on this critical workers’ rights legislation. We are grateful for his leadership on this issue and thank him for continuing to fight for Maine workers.”