Shutdown Update: Office of General Counsel, AFSCME International Union

AFSCME’s Office of the General Counsel is working on over a dozen federal cases filed since Trump took office in January to protect our members’ rights. In a recently filed case to protect federal employees from being RIF’d during the partial government shutdown, a federal judge granted AFSCME’s motion for a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) that prevents the government from illegally terminating our federal employee members during the shutdown. The shutdown threatens to pause the accountability that the Trump administration faces in federal court by these cases and hundreds of other cases brought against the administration. In some of these non-AFSCME cases challenging the Trump administration’s policy decisions and executive actions, the Department of Justice has asked courts to halt proceedings temporarily because DOJ attorneys are unable to work due to the shutdown. As we end the third week of the government shutdown, the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts said it will continue paid operations through Friday, Oct. 17, by using reserve funds consisting of court fee balances and other funds not dependent on a new appropriation. When the reserve funds are depleted, courts “would continue operating, but would be limited to activities needed to support the exercise of the judiciary’s constitutional functions and to address emergency circumstances.” The court’s limited operations during a government shutdown could further allow the Trump administration to stall or advance litigation to their advantage. AFSCME will continue to advocate for our members’ rights in federal court despite a partial government shutdown.