Laborers Local Union 860

Anti-Union

Trump Gearing Up To Slam Unions After Courting Union Workers

 ListenBy Carla St. LouisNovember 11, 2024

Union members react as Aerospace Machinists District 751 President Jon Holden (out of frame) announces that union members rejected a proposed Boeing contract and will go on strike, following voting results at their union hall in Seattle, Washington, on September 12, 2024. (Credit: JASON REDMOND/AFP via Getty Images)

Aseries of gains for America’s unions made during Joe Biden’s presidency are vulnerable now that Donald Trump is headed back to the White House.

Historic union contracts came about with automakersAppleAmazonChipotleBoeingUPSHollywood studios and Starbucks during the Biden administration.

Trump is a staunch advocate for companies to have more control over employees’ pay and anti-union initiatives

His administration is expected to push for a deregulatory approach for companies related to America’s workforce, reported Bloomberg.

“All of that is now under threat,” Daniel Vicente, a regional director for the United Auto Workers, said to Bloomberg. “Everything becomes harder, from organizing to negotiating strong contracts to strikes.”

Paul DeCamp, a corporate lawyer who worked under George W. Bush’s administration as the wage and hour enforcement chief, said Trump is likely to apply “a deregulatory emphasis.”

Biden’s administration supported workers’ rights through key appointments and policies that favored employees, including regulations to protect overtime pay, eliminate noncompete agreements and implement green energy legislation. It also proposed regulations to protect workers from excessive heat.

According to Bloomberg, Trump’s administration could reverse these achievements by appointing pro-business regulators such as lawyers, weakening union protections and deregulating labor rules.

Project 2025, the potential policy blueprint for Republicans, suggested loosening safety, nondiscrimination, and child labor laws and possibly eliminating public-sector unions.

Trump may lessen the authority of the National Labor Relations Board, which enforces workers’ rights to unionize.

Trump will have the power to fire Jennifer Abruzzo, the general counsel for Biden’s NLRB.

It’s plausible that he may fire all of the Democrats on the labor board, however, based on the law, that can only happen due to “neglect of duty or malfeasance,” the news outlet reported.