EPA has told employees they must seek approval from agency ethics officials before working with their union, even on their own personal time.
The move is seen by staff as an escalation to the crackdown on labor groups that have been vocal critics of the Trump administration and comes in the wake of EPA canceling most of their collective bargaining agreements earlier this month.
Agency employees expressed frustration at the latest strike while union officials indicated they will not follow the edict to secure sign-off from the ethics team before organizing off the clock.
Michael Molina, the principal deputy assistant administrator in EPA’s mission support office, told agency employees in an email sent Wednesday that “work on behalf of the union” can not be done “on duty time” or on “appropriate and approved leave.”
