Trump administration tells agencies to restrict unions in the workplace

Source: Washington Post




Federal agencies have been told to carry out Trump administration directives aimed at restricting the role of unions in the federal workplace and giving agencies the maximum discretion in taking disciplinary actions against employees, now that a court ban against many of those policies has been lifted.

The policies “are in full force and effect” and agencies should “ensure that they are fully compliant with all requirements or are taking steps to become compliant with requirements at the soonest feasible opportunity,” the central personnel agency said in a memo issued Friday.

The Office of Personnel Management’s memo came just several days after a court lifted a year-long injunction in an union-sponsored lawsuit against three executive orders issued in May 2018. Several months later, a federal district court agreed with the unions that major parts of the orders overstepped the president’s authority under civil service law. However, in July of this year a federal appeals court held, without ruling on that issue, that the dispute belongs instead before the Federal Labor Relations Authority, which decides on disputes between agencies and unions.

Most of the provisions at issue involve topics of importance in workplaces with union bargaining units, including to limit the topics on which bargaining will be held, set time limits on negotiations and significantly reduce “official time,” which is paid time employees may use for certain union-related purposes, and other accommodations to unions such as free use of office space. The unions still have the option of a further appeal to the Supreme Court but for the meantime the focus will shift to the bargaining table and then to the FLRA.

Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-administration-tells-agencies-to-restrict-unions-in-the-workplace/2019/10/07/39a0b3e8-e928-11e9-85c0-85a098e47b37_story.html