Federal Unions Sue Defense Secretary Over Chaotic Union Contract Terminations
The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) and National Federation of Federal Employees (NFFE) sued Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth in U.S. District Court for Maryland, alleging his April directive to terminate most union contracts at the Department of Defense violated the Administrative Procedure Act. The unions claim the order was implemented with only 24 hours’ notice and no coherent plan, causing chaos and stripping bargaining rights from employees exempt from President Trump’s anti-union executive orders, such as dispatchers and IT workers alongside police and firefighters. The lawsuit focuses on implementation flaws, not the executive orders’ legality.
Editorial summary awaiting refresh
Cross-source coverage
Wire timeline
Federal Unions Sue Pentagon Chief Hegseth Over Abrupt Termination of Collective Bargaining Agreements
The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) and the National Federation of Federal Employees (NFFE) have sued Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth in U.S. District Court for Maryland. The lawsuit challenges Hegseth's April 2026 directive to terminate most collective bargaining agreements (CBAs) at the Department of Defense with only 24 hours' notice. The unions allege the move violated the Administrative Procedure Act and exceeded Hegseth's statutory authority, causing widespread confusion and disruption. The directive implements President Trump's March 2025 executive order stripping collective bargaining rights from much of the federal workforce on national security grounds. The unions argue the Pentagon failed to properly exempt local offices employing police, firefighters, and security guards as required by the order, leading to employees losing rights they should have retained. The lawsuit mirrors a similar challenge filed last year by another federal union.
Defense One - All ContentFederal Unions Sue Defense Secretary Hegseth Over Termination of Collective Bargaining Agreements
Two major federal employee unions, the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) and the National Federation of Federal Employees (NFFE), have filed a lawsuit against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. The suit, filed in the U.S. District Court for Maryland, alleges that Hegseth violated the Administrative Procedure Act and exceeded his statutory authority by abruptly terminating most collective bargaining agreements (CBAs) at the Department of Defense (DOD) with only 24 hours' notice. The unions claim the directive, issued in April 2026 to implement President Trump's anti-union executive orders, caused widespread confusion, chaos, and misinformation across Pentagon facilities. They argue that the DOD failed to create a uniform implementation process or a list of exempt subdivisions (such as those employing police, firefighters, and security guards), leading to employees losing union rights in contradiction of the executive order. This lawsuit mirrors a previous legal challenge by another union and is part of an ongoing legal battle over the executive orders, which have been implemented in fits and starts across federal agencies.
Defense One - All ContentFederal Unions Sue Pentagon Chief Hegseth Over Termination of Collective Bargaining Rights
The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) and the National Federation of Federal Employees (NFFE) have filed a lawsuit against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth in the U.S. District Court for Maryland. The suit alleges that Hegseth's April directive to terminate most collective bargaining agreements (CBAs) at the Department of Defense (DoD) violated the Administrative Procedure Act and exceeded his statutory authority. The unions claim the directive was implemented with only 24 hours' notice and no orderly plan, causing widespread confusion and disruption. Some employees lost union rights despite being exempt under President Trump's anti-union executive order, which exempts police, firefighters, and security guards. The lawsuit follows a series of legal battles over Trump's 2025 executive order citing national security grounds to strip union rights from roughly two-thirds of the federal workforce. The unions seek to restore the CBAs and halt what they describe as an illegal and chaotic process.
Defense One - All ContentFederal Unions Sue Defense Secretary Over Chaotic Termination of Collective Bargaining Agreements
The American Federation for Government Employees (AFGE) and the National Federation of Federal Employees (NFFE) have sued Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth over his April directive to terminate most union contracts at the Department of Defense (DOD). The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for Maryland, alleges Hegseth violated the Administrative Procedure Act by implementing the order with only 24 hours' notice and no coherent plan, resulting in chaos. The unions claim that the slapdash rollout stripped bargaining rights even from employees exempt from President Trump's anti-union executive orders, such as dispatchers and IT workers who work alongside police officers, security guards, and firefighters. The lawsuit focuses on the implementation process rather than the legality of the executive orders themselves, mirroring a previous successful challenge by the International Federation of Professional and Technical Employees that blocked DOD from terminating their contracts.
Government Executive - All ContentFederal Unions Sue Defense Secretary Hegseth Over Chaotic Union Contract Terminations
The American Federation for Government Employees and the National Federation of Federal Employees filed a lawsuit against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, alleging he violated the Administrative Procedure Act by terminating most union contracts with only 24 hours' notice and no orderly plan. The lawsuit claims the slapdash implementation caused chaos, with some union leaders receiving no notification and employees losing bargaining rights despite being exempt from President Trump's anti-union executive orders. The Pentagon failed to identify exempt subdivisions before implementation, leading to workers like dispatchers and IT staff losing protections. The lawsuit focuses on implementation flaws rather than the legality of Trump's executive orders, mirroring a previous successful challenge by another union.
Government Executive - All ContentFederal Unions Sue Defense Secretary Over Termination of Collective Bargaining Agreements
The American Federation for Government Employees (AFGE) and the National Federation of Federal Employees (NFFE) have sued Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth over his April directive to terminate most union contracts at the Department of Defense (DOD). The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for Maryland, alleges Hegseth violated the Administrative Procedure Act by implementing the order with only 24 hours' notice and no coherent plan, resulting in chaos. The unions argue that the slapdash rollout stripped bargaining rights from employees who should have been exempt under President Trump's executive order, including dispatchers and IT workers in offices alongside police and firefighters. The lawsuit focuses on the implementation process rather than the legality of the executive orders themselves, mirroring a similar challenge by the International Federation of Professional and Technical Employees that led to a court order blocking DOD from terminating their contracts.
Government Executive - All Content