Largest federal employee union to shed more than half its staff amid Trump attacks

The American Federation of Government Employees is planning to lay off more than half its staff, as the largest federal employees’ union reels from President Donald Trump’s move to end collective bargaining rights for many federal workers.

The American Federation of Government Employees is planning to lay off more than half its staff, as the largest federal employees’ union reels from President Donald Trump’s move to end collective bargaining rights for many federal workers. AFGE, which has filed an array of lawsuits against the Trump administration, is set to shrink its own workforce to about 150 employees, down from 355 staffers, according to a union spokesperson. The layoffs, which will affect organizers, national representatives, support staff and others, could take place as early as June. But the union, which represents more than 800,000 federal staffers, vowed to continue fighting. “The President’s elimination of elective membership dues and the resulting layoffs are a setback, but they are not the end of AFGE - not by a longshot,” the union said in a statement. “We will not be deterred, silenced, or intimidated into submission.” The downsizing was first reported by the Associated Press. AFGE, along with other federal employee unions, have been hobbled by an executive order Trump signed in March aimed at stripping collective bargaining rights from a sizable share of government employees across more than a dozen agencies. AFGE alone represents about 660,000 workers in the affected departments, according to its lawsuit challenging the order.