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Trump Terminates Collective Bargaining Rights for Most Federal Workers, Including Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, Togus VA Employees, DFAS Limestone, SUPSHIP Bath at BIW & more

Andy O’Brien
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On Thursday, President Donald signed an executive order to outlaw collective bargaining for nearly a million federal workers, citing a little-used provision of federal labor law relating to national security issues. The President claims he is authorized by a rarely-used provision in the 1978 Civil Service Reform Act to exclude federal agencies from collective bargaining rights if the rules “cannot be applied to that agency or subdivision in a manner consistent with national security requirements.” The President’s edict eliminates collective bargaining for nearly 75 percent of federal workers who are currently represented by unions, according to Government Executive. This is by far the most egregious attack by a President on workers' rights in a century.

Specifically, the executive order illegally terminates union contracts for workers at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, the Togus VA Medical Center, the Defense Financing Accounting Services (DFAS) in Limestone, SUPSHIP Bath at BIW and other federal workplaces in Maine.

“The Portsmouth Metal Trades Council stands in strong opposition to the executive orders and memo from the Office of Personnel eliminating collective bargaining rights for a large portion of our federal workforce,”said Alana Schaeffer, President of Plumbers and Pipefitters Local 788 and President of the Metal Trades Council, an association of a dozen unions representing 3,000 employees across ten trades at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard. “For decades, collective bargaining has provided a structured and effective mechanism for federal employees to negotiate issues of workplace safety, effective training, and working conditions, as well as advocating for competitive wages with the private sector, ensuring a stable and motivated workforce. The direct assault on dedicated public servants by stripping these rights is grossly undermining the essential role that labor unions play in advocating for employees and protecting them from unfair and inequitable treatment.”

Schaeffer continued, “The assault on federal workers’ collective bargaining rights will lead to workforce instability, increased turnover, and difficulty in retaining experienced personnel as well as affect the morale of our workforce. An unstable, weakened workforce due to a loss of these rights will gravely impact national security. The Portsmouth Metal Trades Council stands strong in our support of the tradesworkers we represent and their rights to collectively bargain.”

Congressman Golden & Congresswoman Chellie Pingree Oppose Order

Congressman Jared Golden announced Friday that he is introducing legislation to reverse President Trump's executive order and reinstate collective bargaining rights for federal employees.

“The right for workers to collectively bargain is sacrosanct and any claim that it is incompatible with national security is bogus,” Golden said. “I oppose the president’s order and stand in solidarity with the workers affected — including a state workforce of likely more than 6,000 hardworking Mainers at places like VA Togus Medical Center, Bath Iron Works, Portsmouth Naval Shipyard and other worksites across our state. This order cannot stand, and I will introduce legislation to repeal it.”

Congresswoman Chellie Pingree released a statement Friday condemning Trump’s executive order, calling it “a direct attack on the hardworking federal employees who keep our country functioning every single day.”

"I call on everyone who claims to stand for working people to join me in unequivocally condemning this egregious overreach and to stand together in reversing this shameful attack on the labor movement,” said Pingree. “Maine's federal workers—and all workers—deserve nothing less than our steadfast solidarity and support.”

“Straight out of Project 2025, this Executive Order is union busting. It is an attack on workers’ fundamental rights and our freedom of speech and association. Workers in Maine who care for our veterans, service our submarines, make sure our food is safe to eat and much more will no longer have a legal right to organize with their co-workers for better conditions to deliver the best services possible,” said Matt Schlobohm, Executive Director of the Maine AFL-CIO. “We stand in solidarity with our federal union family, a third of whom are military veterans. We will not stand by as our rights are illegally stripped away and our democratic institutions are dismantled by executive fiat. We will fight this with everything we have."

The following agencies and subdivisions are impacted by Trump's March 27, 2025 Executive Order:

  • The Department of Defense
  • The Department of State
  • The Department of the Treasury (except the Bureau of Engraving and Printing)
  • The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)
  • The Department of Justice (except certain components of the U.S. Marshals Service)

Subdivisions of the Department of Homeland Security:

  • Departmental Headquarters components
  • U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
  • Immigration and Customs Enforcement
  • U.S. Coast Guard
  • Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA)
  • Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)

Subdivisions of the Department of Health and Human Services:

  • Office of the Secretary
  • Office of the General Counsel
  • Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
  • Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
  • Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response
  • National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), National Institutes of Health
  • Office of Refugee Resettlement, Administration for Children and Families
  • The Department of Energy (except the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission)

Subdivisions of the Department of the Interior:

  • Office of the Secretary
  • Bureau of Land Management
  • Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement
  • Bureau of Ocean Energy Management

Subdivisions of the Department of Agriculture:

  • Food Safety and Inspection Service
  • Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
  • The International Trade Administration (Department of Commerce)
  • The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
  • The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)
  • The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC)
  • The National Science Foundation (NSF)
  • The International Trade Commission
  • The Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
  • The General Services Administration (GSA)

Chief Information Officer (CIO) Offices:

  • CIO office in each Executive department
  • CIO offices at the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) and the Social Security Administration (SSA)
  • Any other agency or subdivision where information resources management is the primary duty