The White House's latest move on its plan to reshape the federal workforce is to stop collecting union dues from federal employees' paychecks.
This comes after President Donald Trump signed an executive order in March to end collective bargaining at various federal agencies — a change that affects more than 1 million employees.
Union leaders feel their organizations are under attack.
"For all of us, it's just a mile a minute,” said Randy Perreira, the executive director of the Hawaii Government Employees Association — the state's largest union with over 39,000 members. He's also the head of the AFL-CIO's Hawaiʻi chapter.
“The greater concern is that [the president] has no regard for the rule of law, and that they continue to dehumanize the individuals who had innocently applied for and have been doing their jobs, where they're now characterized as incompetent thieves of the public funds," Perreira told HPR.
"Many of them are just openly wondering, 'How am I going to provide for my family?' Because from day to day, you don't know what your status is.”
He and other union leaders are closely watching federal cuts that could affect state and county governments — and their union workers.
"It's not going to be fun. It's going to be a marathon, in many respects, in terms of how this plays out. But most certainly, I don't think any of us should cave and concede our rights. That's what this country was built on. That's what this country stands for."
This interview aired on The Conversation on April 17, 2025. The Conversation airs weekdays at 11 a.m.
