VA Ends Union Contracts for Thousands of Employees, Citing Focus on Veterans

In a sweeping policy shift that could reshape labor relations at one of the largest federal agencies, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs has terminated collective bargaining agreements for most of its unionized workforce, citing a need to better serve veterans and implement long-stalled management reforms.

The decision, announced last week, follows an executive order from President Donald Trump that excludes certain agencies from labor-management relations programs on national security grounds.

The VA said it acted under that order to end union contracts covering hundreds of thousands of employees represented by five major labor organizations, including the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), the National Association of Government Employees (NAGE), the National Federation of Federal Employees (NFFE), National Nurses United (NNOC/NNU), and the Service Employees International Union (SEIU).

The implications are particularly significant in Virginia, which is home to more than 700,000 veterans and thousands of VA employees working in hospitals, clinics, and benefits offices across the state — including major medical centers in Richmond, Hampton, and Salem.

The commonwealth also hosts regional benefits offices and serves as headquarters for several federal unions and advocacy organizations.

While the VA will maintain agreements for approximately 4,000 police officers, firefighters and security guards — occupations exempt from the executive order — the vast majority of bargaining-unit employees across the country are now operating without formal union contracts.

The move drew swift criticism from labor groups but was celebrated by Trump allies and VA leadership as a long-overdue realignment of priorities at an agency that serves more than 9 million veterans annually.

“This decision is good news for Veterans, families, caregivers and survivors,” VA Secretary Doug Collins said in a statement. “Too often, unions that represent VA employees fight against the best interests of Veterans while protecting and rewarding bad workers. We’re making sure VA resources and employees are singularly focused on the job we were sent here to do: providing top-notch care and service to those who wore the uniform.”

VA officials said the decision will allow managers to more effectively reward high performers, hold poor performers accountable and eliminate bureaucratic hurdles to hiring and reform.

According to the agency, more than 1,900 VA employees collectively spent over 750,000 hours on union activity during fiscal year 2024 — time that was compensated with taxpayer dollars. Some employees performing union work earned more than $200,000 annually, the VA noted.

Additionally, the agency cited the use of over 187,000 square feet of VA office and clinical space by union representatives, free of charge, as a significant cost burden. Officials said those resources — which also include union access to government phones and computer systems — should be redirected to patient care and veteran services.

The move also halts payroll deductions for union dues for most employees, a change that took effect on April 25 in compliance with the executive order.

Labor organizations say the agency is turning its back on frontline workers, many of whom are veterans themselves, and warned that terminating collective bargaining agreements will degrade working conditions and compromise patient care.

“This is a direct attack on the rights of the people who care for our nation’s veterans,” Irma Westmoreland, chair of National Nurses United, told Axios. “Without a contract, nurses fear they won’t be empowered to speak up about conditions that put our patients at risk.”

The VA contends that unions have consistently resisted efforts to modernize the agency and hold employees accountable.

Officials noted that AFGE, NFFE and NNOC/NNU opposed the bipartisan MISSION Act, which expanded veterans’ access to private-sector care. NFFE has also supported repealing the 2017 VA Accountability and Whistleblower Protection Act, which was designed to speed disciplinary action against employees and protect whistleblowers.

According to the VA, AFGE collaborated with the administration of former President Joe Biden to reinstate over 100 employees who were fired during Trump’s first term and helped secure nearly $134 million in back pay for more than 1,700 employees dismissed for alleged misconduct.

Labor advocates counter that these laws have been misused to retaliate against whistleblowers and sidestep due process protections, particularly during the Trump administration.

The action makes the VA the first federal agency to fully sever collective bargaining agreements under the Trump-era executive order, a move made possible by language exempting agencies involved in “national security” functions.

Axios reported that the decision could affect up to 400,000 workers — roughly a quarter of the federal workforce with union protections.

Though Biden revoked many Trump-era executive orders affecting federal workers upon taking office, this particular directive remained in place. A Trump spokesperson told Axios at the time that the action reflected the Republican’s priorities heading into the 2025 election, where he vowed to focus heavily on veterans’ issues and government accountability.

U.S. Sens. Mark Warner and Tim Kaine, both Virginia Democrats, criticized the move as harmful to the VA’s workforce and counterproductive to its mission.

“The men and women who work at the VA, many of them veterans themselves, are on the front lines of making sure our nation keeps its promises to those who’ve served,” Warner said in an email Friday.

He called the decision “shortsighted, counterproductive, and disrespectful to those who’ve worn the uniform,” warning that gutting collective bargaining rights would make it even harder for the agency to recruit and retain skilled professionals amid staffing shortages and rising demand for care.

Kaine added that “VA employees in Virginia work tirelessly to deliver high-quality care to veterans in our communities,” and said that “diminishing their rights in the workplace will do nothing to strengthen services or improve efficiency — and those should be VA leadership’s real priorities.”

While the full impact of the VA’s action remains to be seen, labor leaders and policy analysts expect legal challenges and a new round of political fights over the balance between government efficiency and worker protections.

For now, the department insists its mission is clear.

“This is about putting veterans first,” said Collins. “And if that means upsetting union bosses who’ve been standing in the way of reform, so be it.”

by Markus Schmidt, Virginia Mercury

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