The Solidarity Docket
Week of Apr 16, 2026
This week brings two major developments on the collective bargaining front. The Department of Defense has moved to terminate collective bargaining agreements covering hundreds of thousands of civilian employees, and a coalition of eight federal employee unions has filed suit challenging the FLRA's sweeping changes to representation case processing set to take effect April 23. We also summarize the most consequential litigation developments since our last docket.
DoD Moves to Terminate Collective Bargaining Agreements
This week Defense Department components began notifying bargaining units that their collective bargaining agreements are terminated. The action implements an April 9 memorandum from Secretary Pete Hegseth directing termination of all DoD CBAs within 24 hours of the memorandum's date, citing Executive Orders 14251 and 14343.
The memorandum carves out two categories of employees from the termination:
The population covered by the Secretary of Defense certification published at 90 FR 17052 on April 23, 2025, and
Local employing offices of agency police officers, security guards, and firefighters.
The memorandum also excludes any CBAs subject to a court order enjoining implementation of EO 14251. Hegseth directed the DoD to issue supplemental guidance. The memorandum instructs leadership to coordinate with offices of general counsel and human resources to ensure compliance.
AFGE, which represents approximately 300,000 DoD employees, called the action an unlawful attack on federal employees' First Amendment rights and pledged to continue challenging the terminations. AFGE has previously succeeded in challenging similar CBA terminations at other agencies.
Eight Unions Sue FLRA Over Representation Case Overhaul
On April 15, eight federal employee unions filed suit in the District of Massachusetts challenging the Federal Labor Relations Authority's Interim Final Rule that strips Regional Directors of their longstanding authority over representation cases. The rule takes effect April 23, 2026.
The plaintiffs are AFGE, NAGE, AFSCME, NFFE, IFPTE, NNOC/NNU, SEIU, and the AFL-CIO. The case is AFGE v. FLRA, No. 1:26-cv-11747-DJC. Rise Up will include it in next week’s Litigation Tracker along with a link to the docket.
The complaint alleges three APA violations:
Arbitrary and capricious rulemaking. The FLRA failed to provide a reasoned explanation for reversing more than four decades of practice, did not address the Authority's own 1983 finding that delegation to Regional Directors would expedite processing, and ignored the FLRA's FY 2025 performance report showing the Authority missed its own targets for timely decisions while the Office of General Counsel met its targets.
Arbitrary and capricious effective date. The 30-day implementation window applies to already-pending cases with no explanation for the rushed timeline. Prior major representation rulemakings took effect more than three months after publication and did not apply retroactively.
Failure to provide notice and comment. The FLRA issued the rule as an "interim final rule" without prior notice or opportunity for comment. The unions argue the rule does not fit the APA's narrow exception for rules of agency organization, procedure, or practice because it affects substantive rights.
Delays in certification mean delays in bargaining unit employees accessing statutory rights that flow from exclusive representation, including the duty to bargain, information rights, and protections against unilateral changes. Plaintiffs seek declaratory relief, preliminary and permanent injunctions, and a stay of the rule under 5 U.S.C. § 705.
More Litigation Updates
RIF Discovery Compliance (N.D. Cal.): On April 10, plaintiffs in AFGE v. Trumpasked the district court to set deadlines for the government to comply with the court's expedited discovery orders concerning agency RIF and reorganization plans.
Schedule P-C FOIA (D.D.C.): On April 13, the government filed its answer in NTEU v. OPM, the FOIA action seeking records identifying positions agencies have sought to reclassify under Schedule Policy/Career. NTEU amended its complaint earlier this month.
Partnership for Public Service Quantifies $165.6 Billion Economic Cost
The Partnership for Public Service released a broader cost analysis on April 9 estimating that the administration's federal workforce changes have cost the U.S. economy more than $165.6 billion. Last week's docket covered the Partnership's $4.5 billion figure for the deferred resignation program. This week's figure captures a wider set of costs.
Key findings:
$53.2 billion tied to disengaged civil servants, calculated using Gallup's finding that disengaged employees cost their organizations roughly 34% of their salaries, combined with the share of disengaged federal employees measured in a 2025 Partnership survey.
$763.9 million in RIF-related severance payments between January 2025 and January 2026, covering an estimated 10,400 employees removed through agency RIFs.
$443.9 million paid to probationary employees on administrative leave while legal challenges over their terminations proceeded.
$12.1 million spent on rehiring previously terminated employees, including probationary employees brought back in response to court orders or agency reversals.
Approximately $81 million in DOGE activities and personnel during the administration's early months.
Partnership President Max Stier noted the administration's choices have created larger waste than the waste the administration claims to be addressing.
From Service to Severance: An Exhibit on the 2025 Federal Workforce Reductions
From Service to Severance is an exhibit that tells the story of eleven civil servants affected by the 2025 efforts to reduce the federal workforce. The exhibit features portraits by Deb Niemeier and profiles by Tara Van De Mark, drawn from sessions held in the spring and summer of 2025.
The eleven federal employees included represent five federal agencies and range in tenure from under a year to over forty years. Their backgrounds span financial management to education research. The profiles speak to common themes of community, trauma, service, and morals, while preserving the particularity of each person's experience.
The exhibit will launch on May 2 at theCleveland Park Church in Washington, D.C.
In Solidarity,
Suzanne Summerlin
General Counsel Rise Up: Federal Workers Legal Defense Network
