AFL-CIO head on Trump mass firings plan: Federal workers 'not pawns'

Source: The Hill

09/25/25 2:30 PM ET


AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler on Thursday decried the Trump administration’s plans to initiate a reduction in force if discretionary funding lapses next month as outlined in a new White House memo.

“America’s federal workers — the hardworking people across the country who keep our essential government services running — have already suffered immensely from the chaos and destruction inflicted by this administration’s Project 2025/DOGE [Department of Government Efficiency] agenda,” Shuler said in a statement.

“They are not pawns for the president’s political games,” she added. Other union leaders have raised similar concerns. National Treasury Employees Union President Doreen Greenwald said lawmakers are using the federal budget “as a game of chicken with federal employees as the collateral damage.”

The president has sparked speculations of a potential shutdown after canceling a meeting with Democratic leaders to resolve a stalemate.

Read more: https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/5522004-afl-cio-president-slams-trump/