Labor & Employment Law Daily Wrap Up, LITIGATION NEWS, TRENDS—AFGE, AFSCME filed another lawsuit against the Trump administration, (Sep 23, 2025)
Organizations Mentioned:American Federation of Government Employees
By Brandi O. Brown, J.D.
This suit focuses on the August 28, 2025, executive order regarding the collective bargaining rights of employees of USAGM and Voice of America.
Late last week, the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) filed another lawsuit against the Trump administration related to its actions towards public employees. This time, they have filed suit regarding the August 28, 2025, executive order that purports to strip employees at the U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM) and its Voice of America (VOA) of their collective bargaining rights.
In the lawsuit, filed in D.C. federal court, the unions contend that the administration’s union-busting action is a direct attempt to prevent those agency’s employees, comprised of journalists and other media professionals, along with the unions that represent them (AFGE Local 1812 and AFSCME Local 1418), from exercising their First Amendment rights by pursuing litigation and filing grievances to challenge the administration’s closure and dismantlement of USAGM and VOA. Specifically, this speech relates to a previous lawsuit brought in March and the events following the federal district court’s issuance of a preliminary injunction in that matter.
They note that the administration had become “increasingly frustrated with” their speech and petitioning activity and had “publicly expressed its growing animosity” towards them in the days before the executive order was issued.
The unions are asking the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to issue a preliminary injunction restoring workers’ collective bargaining rights.
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