Worker Policy Watch
Your source for accurate and reliable information on how federal policies are shaping workers’ rights—and what’s at stake for working people nationwide under the Trump administration.
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DOL Issues Guidance Mandating That Federally Funded Employment Services Can Only Be Given to People With Work Authorization
Reversing a Biden-era policy, the Trump DOL will not provide workforce development or employment services to undocumented workers.
Impact: Among the services now banned are help obtaining work authorization and enforcing employment rights applicable to all workers regardless of work authorization.
USDOL Announces $5 Million in Grants to Expand Apprenticeship Opportunities for Women
U.S. Secretary of Labor Lori Chavez-DeRemer has announced a $5 million funding opportunity for grants for 14 groups to attract and retain women in apprenticeship programs in manufacturing, construction, cybersecurity, and other in-demand industries.
Impact:
The Women in Apprenticeship and Nontraditional Occupations (WANTO) Grant Program plans to support community-based organizations to recruit, train, and retain women in registered apprenticeships and high-demand occupations.
U.S. Supreme Court Allows Trump’s Mass Firings of Federal Public Servants to Proceed
The Supreme Court has rejected a lower court’s order to block the Trump administration from mass firings and reorganizing of federal agencies without approval from Congress.
Impact:
The Supreme Court’s decision could pave the way for more firings of workers, as some agencies announce they will resume plans for mass layoffs in light of the ruling. The planned mass firings could impact tens of thousands of workers from the U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Commerce, Health and Human Services, State, Treasury, Veterans Affairs, and more than a dozen other agencies.
Trump Extends Federal Worker Hiring Freeze Another Three Months
The Trump administration has extended the hiring freeze of civilian federal workers until mid-October, extending the hiring moratorium in place since January.
Impact:
The Trump administration is increasingly relying on attrition to shrink and dismantle the federal civilian workforce.
VA Reverses Course on Planned Large-Scale Mass Layoffs
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is backing down from plans for mass layoffs of more than 80,000 workers, instead planning a 30,000 reduction of force through attrition only.
Impact:
More than 17,000 workers have left the VA since January 2025. The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) has been pushing back on the planned mass firings.
Trump Administration Withdraws Proposal to Eliminate Subminimum Wage for Workers with Disabilities
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) announced it is withdrawing a Biden-era proposed rule that would have phased out subminimum wage certificates authorized under section 14(c) of the Fair Labor Standards Act for workers with disabilities.
Impact:
This withdrawal means section 14(c) certificates remain in effect, and DOL will continue to issue them. As a result, more than 100,000 disabled workers will still be legally allowed to work for pennies on the dollar, long after workers and advocates around the country have proven that disabled workers are capable of performing the same work as their fully paid colleagues.
Federal Judge Halts Likely Unlawful Mass Layoffs at HHS
U.S. District Judge Melissa DuBose granted a preliminary injunction and ruled that mass layoffs at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HSS) are likely unlawful.
Impact:
This order blocks the Trump administration from finalizing layoffs announced in March or issuing further firings. The ruling applies to workers in four different parts of HHS: the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; the Center for Tobacco Products within the Food and Drug Administration; the Office of Head Start within the Administration for Children and Families; and the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation.
EEOC Changes Review Process For Gender Identity Discrimination Claims
Shortly after taking control of the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), Acting Chair Andrea Lucas responded to a Trump executive order by directing agency staff to automatically dismiss any claims brought by workers of discrimination on the basis of gender identity by classifying them as meritless. The agency is now slightly changing course, saying that it will process certain types of claims that involve hiring, promotion, or firing. Lucas claims that these arbitrary categories are most strongly supported by the Supreme Court’s ruling in Bostock v. Clayton County, despite preexisting agency policy applying Bostock to employment decisions across the board.
Impact:
The agency has abandoned transgender workers for the past five months, refusing to enforce the law to protect them. And even with this change, the agency will continue to leave behind workers who face harassment or retaliation because of their gender identity. Further, the gender identity claims that the EEOC has announced it will now process will be directed to Acting Chair Lucas’s office for review. Given her willingness to politicize the charging process, we have significant concerns about the ability of transgender workers with any type of claim to receive real remedies from the EEOC.
DOL Wage and Hour Division to Stop Seeking Liquidated Damages Against Employers
The U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division (WHD) issued field assistance instructing regional solicitors (RSOLs) to stop seeking liquidated (i.e., double) damages against employers over unpaid minimum wage and overtime.
Impact:
The DOL instructions to field staff reflect the Trump administration’s position that liquidated damages from employers for violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) can only be awarded in judicial proceedings, not as part of pre-litigation settlements collected through the agency. Historically, DOL WHD has sought liquidated damages for workers through litigation or litigation-related settlements for FLSA violations like unpaid minimum wages or unpaid overtime compensation. Congress authorized liquidated damages in wage theft cases because without them, an employer basically gets a loan from the wages they illegally withheld. Liquidated damages are the penalty that makes it unprofitable to steal wages.
Federal Judge Orders Job Corps to Keep Running During Lawsuit
U.S. District Judge Andrew Carter granted a preliminary injunction to prevent the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) from shutting down Job Corps.
Impact:
Judge Carter rejected DOL’s claims that it did not need to follow a congressionally mandated protocol for closing down Job Corps centers because it was “pausing” not closing Job Corps centers and their activities. Job Corps aims to support young adults who struggled to finish traditional high school and find jobs. The program provides tuition-free housing at residential centers, training, meals and health care.