Washington, D.C. – The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), represented by Democracy Forward and others, filed a lawsuit challenging the Trump-Vance administration’s threats of a mass firing of federal employees during the government shutdown. The filing argues that the Office of Management and Budget Director, Russell Vought, who was a co-author of Project 2025, and the Office of Personnel Management Director, Scott Kupor, violated the law through their threats to engage in the mass firing of federal workers during a shutdown.
“President Trump is using the civil service as a bargaining chip as he marches the American people into a government shutdown. Federal workers do the work of the people and playing games with their livelihoods is cruel and unlawful. That is why we have sued today,” said Skye Perryman, President and CEO of Democracy Forward. “Since inauguration, this administration has pursued a harmful Project 2025 agenda, attacking community programs and charities, lawyers, schools, private companies, law firms, judges, universities, public servants, and the programs, foundations, and civil servants working to deliver services to people and keep communities safe. No one’s lives have been made easier or better by these actions, and we will continue to meet these attacks in court. We are honored to again represent AFGE and AFSCME in protecting the American people from the Trump-Vance administration’s callous and unlawful agenda.”
Read the filing here.
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NBC News: Unions sue over Trump’s ‘illegal’ plan to fire many federal workers in a shutdown
WASHINGTON — Two unions have sued the Trump administration over its plans to fire federal workers during the impending government shutdown, alleging that the “unlawful threats” were contrary to the law and should be declared unlawful by a federal court in San Francisco.
“These actions are contrary to law and arbitrary and capricious, and the cynical use of federal employees as a pawn in Congressional deliberations should be declared unlawful and enjoined by this Court,” alleges the lawsuit, filed hours ahead of the shutdown.
The suit, which was filed by the American Federation of Government Employees and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, involves the groups Democracy Forward and the State Democracy Defenders Fund. The court docket did not immediately reflect which judge would handle the case, which names Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought as a defendant.
Democracy Forward President and CEO Skye Perryman said Trump is “using the civil service as a bargaining chip as he marches the American people into a government shutdown.”
The Hill: Unions sue to block mass firings during shutdown
Federal government labor unions sued Tuesday to block the Trump administration from conducting mass layoffs during the potential upcoming government shutdown.
Employees are usually temporarily furloughed during a shutdown, except for exempted workers, and receive back pay after a shutdown ends. But Trump and the White House budget office have suggested permanent firings could be on the table if government funding expires at midnight.
The lawsuit, filed in federal court in San Francisco, alleges the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) misinterpreted federal law governing shutdowns when it issued a memo suggesting agencies should “use this opportunity” to consider layoffs for programs with lapsed funding and that aren’t priorities of the president.
The unions are represented by San Francisco-based law firm Altshuler Berzon and two left-leaning legal organizations that frequently sue the Trump administration: Democracy Forward and Democracy Defenders Fund.
Axios: Unions sue Trump admin over mass layoff plan during government shutdown
Labor unions representing hundreds of thousands of government employees sued the Trump administration over its threats to fire federal workers during the government shutdown.
Why it matters: If the White House follows through on the threat, the shutdown could bring another wave of layoffs for a federal workforce already hollowed out by Trump’s DOGE cuts earlier this year.
In a lawsuit filed ahead of the midnight funding deadline, the American Federation of Government Employees and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees argued that the administration’s actions are “contrary to law and arbitrary and capricious.”
What they’re saying: “Federal workers do the work of the people and playing games with their livelihoods is cruel and unlawful,” said Skye Perryman, president and CEO of Democracy Forward, in a statement on the lawsuit.
The unions asked the court to declare that OMB and OPM acted unlawfully and stay the OMB memorandum.
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Democracy Forward Foundation is a national legal organization that advances democracy and social progress through litigation, policy, public education, and regulatory engagement. For more information, please visit www.democracyforward.org.