The Environmental Protection Agency's decision last year to scrap a legally negotiated union contract covering roughly 8,000 employees has sparked a federal lawsuit, with the union arguing the move is part of a broader assault on the civil service and the public's right to honest science.
The American Federation of Government Employees Council 238 filed suit in federal court last month against the EPA and Administrator Lee Zeldin, seeking to restore the collective bargaining agreement that took years to negotiate. The agency voided the contract in a single day, invoking “national security” concerns—a justification the union calls pretextual.
The terminated contract provided union representation in disciplinary proceedings, independent grievance and arbitration mechanisms, and protections for employees who flag scientific misconduct or political interference. Losing those safeguards, the union argues, leaves career scientists vulnerable to retaliation for doing their jobs.
“Federal employees do not work for a president, a political party, or an ideology—we work for America,” said Justin Chen, president of AFGE Council 238, in a statement announcing the lawsuit.
The dispute is not merely a labor matter, Chen said. It goes to the heart of how the government serves the public, especially at an agency tasked with protecting clean air, water, and public health. “Our members are scientists, engineers, enforcement officers, and inspectors who directly protect communities,” he said. “When a pollutant threatens children with asthma or a community cannot trust its drinking water, EPA workers must be free to follow the evidence.”
The union's legal challenge comes after the agency disciplined 139 employees who signed a June 2025 declaration of dissent raising concerns about political interference in science-based decisions. Twenty were fired and 119 suspended without pay; 110 of those disciplined were covered by the contract. The union alleges the discipline violated First Amendment rights by punishing protected speech on matters of public concern.
This fight extends beyond the EPA. The administration has targeted collective bargaining at other agencies, including the Department of Veterans Affairs, the CDC, the FDA, the Bureau of Prisons, and the Department of Defense. The union sees a coordinated pattern of political pressure on the federal workforce.
Chen emphasized that the stakes are existential for the agency's mission. “Administrations come and go. Our responsibility does not,” he said. “Public servants need to be able to tell the truth without first asking whether the truth will cost them their jobs.”
The lawsuit also raises questions about the administration's broader approach to governance, which some critics say prioritizes political loyalty over institutional integrity. The union's fight, Chen said, is a fight for every American who expects government scientists to speak truth to power.
