The Solidarity Docket
Weekly Dispatch from Suzanne Summerlin, General Counsel
October 23, 2025
Colleagues in Solidarity,
First, a heartfelt thank-you to the Peggy Browning Fund’s 28th Annual National Law Students Workers’ Rights Conference. Rise Up and Democracy Forward were honored to open the Friday night plenary for hundreds of law students who are eager to use their skills to defend the rights of working people—including federal workers.
For law students who want to get involved, Rise Up offers a hands-on opportunity to conduct intake screenings for the Network. It’s a meaningful way to develop real-world interviewing and communication experience while contributing to the defense of public service.
Sign up here: workerslegaldefense.org/volunteer
Shutdown Enters Historic Territory
The federal government shutdown is now the second-longest funding lapse in modern history, surpassed only by the 35-day shutdown of 2018–2019. Shutdowns themselves are a relatively recent phenomenon, dating back to 1980, when the Justice Department first interpreted the Anti-Deficiency Act to require agencies to halt operations during funding lapses.
This week, Sen. Jeff Merkley held the Senate floor for nearly 23 hours in an impassioned filibuster denouncing the continued furlough of hundreds of thousands of federal employees and demanding a clean funding bill.
Meanwhile, agencies continue to plan or implement reductions in force that raise serious legal and ethical concerns:
Interior Department: More than 2,000 employees targeted for layoffs under the department’s new reorganization plan. (Federal News Network)
National Nuclear Security Administration: For the first time in U.S. history, 1,400 nuclear security staff were furloughed due to a shutdown. (Federal News Network)
Public perception: Nearly half of Americans say they’ve already felt the shutdown’s effects, from delays in Social Security services to stalled public health inspections. (Partnership for Public Service poll)
ProPublica: “Why Did You Leave the Department of Veterans Affairs?” — ProPublica is calling on doctors, nurses and other front-line VA staff who recently departed to share their stories. The investigative project aims to uncover how working-conditions changes and new leadership policies may be affecting retention and veteran care. Read more »
Federal News Network: “I am reliving the nightmare: Federal employees get second RIF notice after agencies brought them back” — As the shutdown drags on, some federal employees who were previously reinstated are now receiving second notices of reduction-in-force (RIF). The story highlights grave personal tolls, from health-care anxieties to threats to retirement paths. Read more »
Court Expands TRO Protecting Federal Workers
Judge Susan Illston of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California expanded the Temporary Restraining Order halting agency reductions in force (RIFs) carried out during the shutdown.
The TRO, originally issued in response to a lawsuit brought by AFGE, AFSCME, and Democracy Forward, now also covers employees represented by the National Federation of Federal Employees (NFFE), Service Employees International Union (SEIU), and the National Association of Government Employees (NAGE). The American Federation of Teachers (AFT), International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers (IFPTE), and National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU) have also petitioned the Court to be added to the case, which could happen at any time.
Judge Illston’s order bars the OMB, OPM, and all affected agencies from:
Issuing new RIF notices “during or because of the federal government shutdown,” and
Implementing or enforcing any directives authorizing such actions, including the OMB’s Lapse Memorandum and related OPM guidance.
The ruling makes clear that this prohibition applies to any RIF notices issued on or after October 1, 2025, even if they were planned prior to the shutdown.
In filings made public this week, the government disclosed the following agency-level RIF counts:
Agency RIF Notices Filed
Commerce 281 specific, 159 general notices
Education 465
EPA 27
HHS 954
HUD 442
Interior 2,050
Agencies confirmed to the Court they have instructed HR offices to cease all RIF-related work in compliance with the TRO.
SSA Defies Shutdown Guidance
In a troubling development, the Social Security Administration has reportedly been denying telework and schedule flexibility requests from excepted employees, contradicting OPM’s shutdown guidance and its own prior practice. (Government Executive)
The denials have sparked outrage among frontline staff who continue to work without pay while managing high workloads and public-facing service obligations.
Another Inspector General Fired
Finally, this week saw the latest blow to federal oversight: President Trump fired another Inspector General, raising alarm about the continued erosion of independent watchdogs.
As Government Executive reports, the removal adds to a growing list of IG dismissals that have weakened accountability across agencies, particularly during the shutdown. (Read the story)
Did You Know?
The National Federation of Federal Employees (NFFE), founded in 1918, was the first union to win collective representation for government workers - more than four decades before the private sector gained those rights under the National Labor Relations Act.
That legacy of courage and solidarity still guides our movement today.
In solidarity,
Suzanne Summerlin
General Counsel, Rise Up: Federal Workers Legal Defense Network