(Washington, D.C.)—Amid reports that Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, is attempting to gain access to sensitive personal data at the Department of Labor (DOL), the AFL-CIO, together with a coalition of its affiliated unions and an economic think tank, filed an emergency lawsuit today protecting the confidential information of America’s working people. This action is intended to assure America’s workers that we can continue to rely on the Department of Labor to protect our basic workplace rights without turning information about workplace investigations over to one of the country’s biggest union-busters.
The coalition filed a Motion for Temporary Restraining Order in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to stop Musk’s DOGE, from unlawfully accessing the DOL’s systems and information. The labor movement considers it a top priority to protect the integrity of union members’ personal data and assure all workers who interact with the Labor Department that our information won’t be turned over to an unelected CEO whose companies have been the subject of numerous DOL investigations over the years.
The lawsuit filing coincides with a large rally at the Labor Department this afternoon to protest DOGE’s reported attempt to access private DOL data.
“Elon Musk has absolutely no business raiding the Department of Labor to obtain the sensitive personal information of workers,” said AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler. “It’s outrageous that Musk thinks he has the authority to access private data on workers from an agency that’s entrusted with protecting the fundamental rights of working people. With this lawsuit, we intend to stop Musk’s power grab cold.”
In addition to the AFL-CIO, lawsuit plaintiffs include AFGE, AFSCME, SEIU, the Communications Workers of America (CWA) and the Economic Policy Institute.
The full lawsuit can be viewed here.
Contact: Steve Smith, 202-637-5018