Every week, we bring you a roundup of the top news and commentary about issues and events important to working families. Here’s the latest edition of the Working People Weekly List.
America’s Unions Sue DOGE, Launch the ‘Department of People Who Work for a Living’: “‘The government can work for billionaires or it can work for working people—but not both,’ said AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler, in the press release published Wednesday. ‘Elon is just getting started. And he has already tried to force workers doing essential services—including at the FAA and air traffic controllers even after the tragedy at Washington National Airport—to retire, gained access to the Treasury Department’s payment system with everyone’s private data, and is declaring entire government agencies like USAID shut down and blocking workers from accessing the building and their email.’ The organization pledged to doggedly report on how DOGE’s policies are impacting American workers.”
Federal Worker ‘Deferred Resignation' Program Temporarily Blocked: “‘We are pleased the court temporarily paused this deadline while arguments are heard about the legality of the deferred resignation program. We continue to believe this program violates the law, and we will continue to aggressively defend our members’ rights,’ American Federation of Government Employees National President Everett Kelley said in a statement.”
AFL-CIO Pushes Back on Elon Musk’s Campaign Against Federal Workers: “The nation’s largest federation of unions is starting a campaign to push back on Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, who has been empowered by President Trump to carry out a largely unchecked attempt to purge the federal work force. The campaign by the AFL-CIO. is called the Department of People Who Work for a Living, a play on Mr. Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency. ‘Government can work for billionaires or it can work for working people—but not both,’ Liz Shuler, the AFL-CIO president, said in a statement.”
Protests Against Trump and Project 2025 Are Planned in Cities Across the U.S.: “A movement to oppose the early actions of President Donald Trump’s administration is taking off online, with plans to protest across the U.S. on Wednesday. The movement has organized under the hashtags #buildtheresistance and #50501, which stands for 50 protests, 50 states, one day. Many of the protests are planned at state capitols, with some in other cities. The movement has websites and accounts across social media. Flyers circulating online decry Project 2025, a hard-right playbook for American government and society, and include messages such as ‘reject fascism’ and ‘defend our democracy.’”
U.S. Court Upholds Biden Minimum Wage Order for Federal Contractors: “A U.S. appeals court on Tuesday upheld Democratic former President Joe Biden's mandate setting a minimum wage that federal contractors must pay to their employees, which recently rose to $17.75 an hour. A three-judge panel of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans rejected claims, opens new tab by Texas and two other Republican-led states that Biden in the 2021 executive order overstepped his powers to regulate federal procurement.”
Diversity Strengthens Our Workforce, Trump Attacks Weaken It: “It is disheartening to see that the Trump Administration has begun its effort to end DEI programs in federal agencies. Building diversity strengthens our institutions and we have made progress over the last several decades in advancing toward fairness and justice. Sadly, the attacks on diversity we are witnessing stand to not only halt that progress, but take us backward to a time when discrimination prevented so many of us from accessing opportunities afforded to others. In the Labor Movement, we have fought hard to make our membership look like the communities we serve, and we have come a long way in making our leadership look like our membership. Women and people of color have joined unions in increasing numbers and many of us have made our way to the very top to lead our unions at the local, state and national level.”
Cambridge Health Alliance Clinician Union Wins Certification: “Cambridge Health Alliance clinicians won union certification Thursday, giving a bargaining unit of 230 physicians, physician associates, and psychologists the right to negotiate with the health system over working conditions. The union, called SHARE CHA/AFSCME, was certified by Massachusetts’ Department of Labor Relations about two months after 160 clinicians informed the state of their intention to organize.”
For America to Maintain Competitive Edge, We Must Keep Clean Energy Tax Credits: “American clean energy is creating jobs and bringing cost savings for families across Southeast and Coastal Georgia. As a member of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW), I know firsthand how important clean energy is to make our economy work for all of us. If we want to build back American manufacturing and keep our competitive edge over China, we need to invest in the energy of the future.”
Inside the Fight for the First Whole Foods Union: “On Monday, workers at Philadelphia’s Center City Whole Foods Market voted 130–100 to be represented by the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union. It marks the first time an Amazon-owned Whole Foods store has voted to unionize—and it is one of the first major union elections of the second Trump presidency.”