In a bold legal counterstrike, a coalition of powerful U.S. labor unions has sued the Trump administration over an executive order they claim guts a critical federal agency responsible for resolving labor disputes. The target: the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS), a nearly 80-year-old institution that’s quietly helped keep labor peace across industries since 1947.
The lawsuit, filed in Manhattan federal court, blasts Trump’s March directive to scale the FMCS—and six other agencies—down to their “minimum presence and function required by law.” According to the complaint, that order isn’t just a policy shift; it’s an unconstitutional swipe at Congress’ authority to establish and fund government agencies.
More than 90% of FMCS employees have been sent home on administrative leave, field offices have been shuttered, and operations have slowed to a crawl, the unions say. What remains is a “skeleton staff” clinging to a mandate that once covered thousands of collective bargaining cases every year.
“Without FMCS, we’re stranded—stuck with expired contracts, no mediators, and a much greater risk of strikes and lockouts,” the plaintiffs warn.
Among the plaintiffs are some of the largest and most influential labor organizations in the country, including the American Federation of Government Employees, the AFL-CIO, and the American Federation of Teachers. Together, they argue that the FMCS serves as a vital buffer during high-stakes negotiations in both the public and private sectors—from hospitals to postal services—and that dismantling it will destabilize already fragile labor relations nationwide.
The FMCS claims it’s still operating “within its statutory functions,” though unions allege the agency’s ability to function is now largely symbolic.
The lawsuit asks the court to block the implementation of Trump’s executive order entirely, force the agency to restore staffing levels, and resume full mediation operations. The case is titled American Federation of Teachers v. Goldstein, and it’s now on the docket in the Southern District of New York.
While the administration hasn’t responded publicly to the complaint, the clash sets the stage for a constitutional showdown over executive authority, congressional power, and the future of federal labor mediation. The labor movement, it seems, is drawing a line—and this time, it’s in the courts.
