Trump Administration’s Anti-Union Campaign

Since returning to office, the Trump administration has pursued a series of measures that reduce workplace protections and limit collective-bargaining rights. OSHA inspections were cut by 20 percent compared with the previous year, and implementation of a silica-dust rule for coal miners was repeatedly delayed, prompting the United Mine Workers to call for “immediate enforcement.” In the past year the administration lowered the minimum wage for federal contractors from $17.75 to $13.30 per hour, a change that analysts say can cost affected workers more than $9,000 annually. A rescinded Biden-era overtime rule will leave 4.3 million workers ineligible for time-and-a-half pay. The White House has also moved to end collective-bargaining rights for roughly 1 million federal employees across agencies such as the Transportation Security Administration and the Department of Veterans Affairs, and fired NLRB chair Gwynne Wilcox, replacing her with pro-business appointees. A February proposal to make it easier to classify construction and gig workers as independent contractors would remove minimum-wage, overtime, and benefit obligations for many employers.

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• OSHA inspections down 20 percent.

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• Minimum-wage cut for federal contractors: $13.30 vs. $17.75 per hour.

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• Estimated annual pay loss for some workers: > $9,000.

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• 4.3 million workers lose overtime eligibility.

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• Targeted 3 million home-care workers for removal of minimum-wage and overtime protections.

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• Attempted to strip bargaining rights from ? 1 million federal employees.

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• Manufacturing employment down 35,000 jobs since the administration’s return.

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The administration also framed the classification-rule change as a way to reduce labor costs for employers. Department of Homeland Security officials obtained financial records from the Service Employees International Union and the Communications Workers of America as part of a broader inquiry into alleged “domestic terrorism financing.” Prosecutors reportedly told a grand jury that the AFL-CIO and affiliated unions were part of a “criminal conspiracy” to obstruct ICE operations in Minnesota.

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Labor leaders have condemned the agenda as the most anti-union stance in modern history. Sara Nelson, president of the Association of Flight Attendants, described the targeting of union activists as “terrible” and “outrageous.”

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• “President Trump will always put American workers first, which is why he signed the largest middle-class tax cuts in history, secured trillions in investments into our country, and negotiated historic trade deals to reshore our manufacturing industry and protect American jobs. Thanks to President Trump, American workers are prioritized over illegal aliens and foreign-born workers once again.” — Taylor Rogers, a White House spokesperson

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• “The Trump administration is systematically weakening policies and institutions that give workers a voice, that give workers protections and that hold employers accountable,” — Heidi Shierholz, president of the Economic Policy Institute, a progressive thinktank

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• “It’s terrible that they’re going after labor activists and unions in Minnesota for merely standing up for their neighbors,” — Sara Nelson

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