Unions representing employees at EPA and other agencies want a broader and more permanent block against the Trump administration’s plans to use the government shutdown to shrink the federal workforce.
In a late Tuesday filing, the administration’s challengers asked a federal judge in California to expand their lawsuit to include workers from additional unions, including the National Treasury Employees Union, which also counts employees at the departments of Energy and the Interior, as well as EPA, among its members.
“The administration’s move to fire thousands of patriotic civil servants while the government is shut down is patently illegal, and I’m glad we are able to expand our lawsuit to protect even more federal workers from facing termination,” American Federation of Government Employees National President Everett Kelley said in a statement.
“President Trump has made no secret that this is about punishing his political enemies and has nothing to do with the actual work that these employees perform,” Kelley continued. “Data provided by the administration under court order illustrates how vast and unlawful these intended firings are and validates our union’s determination to challenge this illegal action. We will not stop fighting on behalf of our members and every federal employee who serves this country.”
