Judge Restores Federal Worker Labor Pacts in Blow to Trump (2)

The Trump administration must recognize union rights and collective bargaining agreements for a large portion of federal employees after a federal judge blocked a March executive order that sought to strip them.

Government officials are barred from implementing nearly all of President Donald Trump’s March 27 directive, Judge Paul Friedman of the US District Court for the District of Columbia said Friday in granting a preliminary injunction. The order restores labor rights for workers at the departments of State, Defense, Justice, and Treasury, along with dozens of other agencies and subagencies.

The ruling is a blow to the administration, which has moved to weaken federal-sector unions amid widespread workforce cuts.

Trump’s order had declared over 1 million employees at over 40 agencies and sub-agencies exempt from federal labor protections by saying they served national security interests. Friedman, a Clinton appointee, held the order unlawful, along with further guidance released by the Office of Personnel Management.

The only groups of employees not included in Friedman’s injunction are certain foreign service departments, including embassies, consulates, and those reporting directly to the Secretary of State.

Friedman said he would issue an opinion in the coming days with further explanation of his decision.

During an April 23 hearing, Friedman had seemed concerned over the government’s interpretation of “primary” in relation to an agency’s functions.

The lawsuit from the National Treasury Employees Union, which represents over 100,000 impacted federal workers, is one of several court disputes over the Trump executive order.

The government separately sued an NTEU local in Kentucky and a local of the American Federation of Government Employees in Texas, asking the district courts to declare the executive order legal. AFGE and a union representing foreign service workers have also filed lawsuits against the Trump administration in D.C. district court.

NTEU President Doreen Greenwald called the injunction a “a victory for federal employees” in an emailed statement.

“The preliminary injunction granted at NTEU’s request means the collective bargaining rights of federal employees will remain intact and the administration’s unlawful agenda to silence the voices of federal employees and dismantle unions is blocked,” Greenwald said.

The administration didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.

The case is National Treasury Employees Union v. Trump, D.D.C., No. 1:25-cv-00935, 4/25/25.