Unions Called Out for Weak Response to Trump’s Federal Worker Crackdown
Donald Trump’s latest move against federal workers wiping out collective bargaining rights, canceling contracts, and cutting off automatic union dues is being called one of the most aggressive anti-union attacks in U.S. history. But aside from a few strongly worded statements, most unions have responded with… not much.
Some unions, like the Painters and Allied Trades, at least acknowledged how serious this is, calling it possibly the biggest assault on organized labor ever. But even they stopped short of calling for real action. Others, like the National Nurses Union or UFCW, didn’t even mention Trump’s name in their statements. One union the TWU even told its New York local not to say anything about Trump at all when addressing federal policy. The idea? Leave room to cozy up to him later if needed.
A few unions did step up filing lawsuits or issuing vague calls to “fight back” but for the most part, the response has been tepid. The AFL-CIO mentioned Trump by name but only encouraged people to call Congress. Some unions claimed they’re “ready to fight,” but haven’t shown what that means.
The reality is, this kind of soft response isn’t new. Unions have been playing it safe for decades, especially since the 1980s when Reagan fired striking air traffic controllers and unions largely backed down. Ever since, risk aversion has been the norm, not the exception.
What’s needed now, according to labor writer Marc Kagan, is way more than press releases or lawsuits. He’s pushing for political strikes actual walkouts to defend not just union rights, but basic democratic ones. That might sound extreme, but Kagan argues that Trump and his allies like Elon Musk and the Christian nationalist movement won’t back down because of court challenges or rallies. Real resistance will take real action.
But that would mean unions have to get uncomfortable. They’d have to organize hard at the ground level, get their members educated and ready to mobilize, and be willing to take risks including breaking the law if necessary.
Unions are still the biggest piece of organized working-class power in America, but unless they start acting like it, they’re just going to keep losing ground. The time to play it safe is long gone.
