SCHUMER, STANDING WITH UNION WORKERS AT DFAS ROME, SLAMS TRUMP ADMIN DECISION TO STRIP UNION RIGHTS FROM THOUSANDS OF DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE UNION WORKERS ACROSS NY – INCLUDING[...]

Trump Administration Terminated Collective Bargaining Agreements For Nearly All Federal Employees, Including 1,100 DoD Civilian Employees At DFAS & AFRL In Rome And Thousands More Across NY

Schumer Advances Effort To Protect DoD Federal Employees' Collective Bargaining Rights By Prohibiting Use Of Fed $$ In Annual National Defense Bill To Implement Trump Executive Order Terminating Rights For Federal Labor Unions

Schumer: Hands Off DFAS & Rome Labs Workers' Union Rights!

After the Trump administration stripped union protections and collective bargaining rights from more than 1,100 U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) civilian employees at DFAS and AFRL in Rome, and thousands more across New York State, U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer stood with a bipartisan group of public officials, community leaders, and union members to fight this decision and launch his renewed push to pass legislation in the Fiscal Year 2027 (FY27) National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) rescinding President Trump's executive order and restoring the union protections that DoD's civilian workers depend on.

"Attacking union rights is a slap in the face to hardworking civilian employees here in the Mohawk Valley DFAS and AFRL and across New York. For decades, workers at DFAS Rome have worked tirelessly to support our national security interests by managing financial operations essential to the Department of Defense. Now, the Trump administration is attacking one of the freedoms core to our country's values - Americans' right to organize and to form unions to bargain for fair wages and benefits," said Senator Schumer. "After more than a year of decimating the federal workforce, ripping up contracts for DoD workers makes it harder to retain our top-notch civilian workforce. Stripping these devoted civil servants of their collective bargaining rights undermines not only their workplace protections, but also the stability and morale of the civilian workforce that underpins our national defense. The Trump administration must stop its attack on our hardworking federal employees immediately. I will be fighting nonstop for my legislation in this year's NDAA to roll back President Trump's executive order and to restore and protect our federal workforce's right to collectively bargain."

Last year, the Trump administration moved to terminate most collective bargaining agreements for federal employees, stripping union protections from more than one million civilian employees across the federal government. His executive order nullified existing federal employee unions from dozens of federal agencies and agency subdivisions, effectively revoking their collective bargaining rights.

Earlier this year, the DoD became the latest agency to terminate collective bargaining rights when Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth issued a notice to terminate most of the department's collective bargaining agreements, impacting approximately 300 workers at AFRL Rome, 800 workers at DFAS Rome, thousands of other DoD civilian employees across New York, and hundreds of thousands of across the country who directly serve and contribute to our national defense and serve our military servicemembers and families. The 300,000 civilian employees at the Department of Defense include the largest population of veterans of any federal agency and make up a significant share of the department's workforce.

Schumer said, "Because so many DoD civilian employees are veterans themselves, ending collective bargaining at the department effectively leaves a workforce that previously served in uniform with fewer tools to advocate for fair treatment in their civilian roles. That is not how we should treat our vets."

Now, 1,100 civilian employees at DFAS and AFRL in Rome are being affected, and thousands across the state, including 600 workers at Fort Drum. With these protections stripped away, employees will no longer have a voice to file grievances, negotiate workplace conditions or assignments, or advocate for fair treatment on issues like work hours, promotions, parental leave, and meal allowances.

"This administration's decision to terminate our collective bargaining agreement flies in the face of established law, and has unfairly stripped union rights and protections from more than 800 employees at DFAS and 300 employees at AFRL here in Rome. As a result, 1,100 devoted federal civil servants and AFGE members are being denied access to their contractually agreed upon rights and protections for everything from addressing workplace expectations and goal setting to the use and approval of PTO and sick leave, requests for medical accommodations, and more," said Mary Sharp, President, AFGE Local 2612. "The elimination of our collective bargaining rights, combined with the loss of over 200 employees from the administration's buyouts, reductions in-force and hiring freezes, have caused dramatic changes the workforce and mission readiness at both DFAS and AFRL. We need our elected and community leaders to stand and fight alongside us now more than ever. So, on behalf of all 1,100 members of AFGE Local 2612, I would like to thank Senator Schumer for leading the charge in Congress to restore our collective bargaining rights, and for always fighting to protect our workforce here at DFAS and AFRL in Rome."

"Whenever this many employees across any industry lose their right to collective bargaining it creates uncertainty in the workforce. 1,100 local individuals who are part of our Utica and Rome community are caught in the cross-fire. As a former employee at Rome Lab who understands the value of these rights, I would like to see that this drastic change be reconsidered," said Michael P. Galime, Mayor, City of Utica. "I would like to thank Senator Schumer for coming to our community to fight for the right to collectively bargain, and I am proud to stand with the Senator in support of bipartisan cooperation to protect that right for DFAS and Rome Lab workers living in Utica and throughout the Mohawk Valley."

"The employees at AFRL and DFAS have supported those that serve in our military as union members for many years. Some of these employees are veterans themselves who have already answered the call to serve before and have returned to serve our nation in a different capacity. I want to thank Senator Schumer for putting forward legislation to protect our neighbors that are working at these local facilities. Their hard work and dedication to all those that keep our great nation safe is commendable, said Marianne Buttenschon, Member of the New York State Assembly, 119th District.

Schumer pledged to lead the fight against this attack on union rights and announced that he will file the Protect America's Workforce Act as an amendment to the Fiscal Year (FY) 2027 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that would protect workers' collective bargaining rights. Schumer explained that his amendment would prohibit the use of federal funding authorized in the NDAA for DoD to be used for implementing Trump's executive order.

Schumer has been the leading champion in Congress to protect union jobs at DFAS Rome. Most recently, after securing key language in both the FY 2023 and FY 2024 NDAA, Schumer successfully safeguarded 600 jobs at DFAS Rome imperiled by automation. Thanks to the Senator's years-long effort, the AFGE union representing DFAS Rome received a commitment from DFAS management that no Rome employees would lose their jobs due to automation, and DFAS would adopt 19 workforce training recommendations made by AFGE to retrain and upskill employees for new roles.

In 2020, Schumer secured language in the FY 2021 NDAA increasing Congressional oversight over DFAS personnel changes and adding additional protection for DFAS employees by requiring DoD to justify that proposed changes would yield significant cost savings before transitioning any functions that would result in the reduction or transfer of DFAS employees. In 2018, Schumer went to bat for DFAS in the Senate and saved 200 jobs by successfully ensuring that a House NDAA provision containing a 25% cut to agencies that employ civilian workers was rejected in the Senate NDAA. In 2017, after years of direct advocacy to former Army Secretary John McHugh, Schumer announced that a US Army pilot program jeopardizing over 1000 DFAS Rome jobs had concluded and there would be no changes or layoffs. In 2014, Schumer visited DFAS Rome to announce that DFAS would stay in Rome.

The Defense Finance and Accounting Service was created in 1991 to standardize and improve accounting and financial operations for DoD. They provide payroll services for DoD military and civilian personnel, retirees, and other major contractors and vendors. DFAS operates as a separate and unique entity in DoD to ensure transparency and accountability on behalf of DoD financing and accounting. Schumer and Gillibrand are praising the effort to advance DFAS's current workforce so they can either stay in their current jobs or be trained in new skills to move to different roles.

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