Politics
Unions Rally at Jesse Brown VA Facility, Demand Trump Administration Restores Collective Bargaining Rights
Hines VA motor vehicle operator and U.S. Army veteran Henry Vega speaks during a rally across from the Jesse Brown VA Medical Center on the Near West Side on Aug. 15, 2025. (Eunice Alpasan / WTTW News)
Workers at U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs health facilities gathered across the street from the Jesse Brown VA Medical Center on the Near West Side on Friday to call on the Trump administration to restore collective bargaining rights after it terminated union contracts for VA workers last week.
“Every member of the VA staff plays a crucial role in the infrastructure of our facilities, but thanks to the attacks on our union and attempts to privatize veterans’ care, that infrastructure is crumbling,” said Hines VA motor vehicle operator and U.S. Army veteran Henry Vega, who said workers at VA facilities were overworked and short-staffed.
Last week, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs terminated union contracts for most bargaining-unit employees, stripping labor protections for about 400,000 workers. Union contracts covering roughly 4,000 VA police officers, firefighters or security guards remain in place, according to the department.
“Too often, unions that represent VA employees fight against the best interests of Veterans while protecting and rewarding bad workers,” VA Secretary Doug Collins said in an Aug. 6 news release announcing contract terminations. “We’re making sure VA resources and employees are singularly focused on the job we were sent here to do: providing top-notch care and service to those who wore the uniform.”
Everett Kelley, president of the largest federal workers union, American Federation of Government Employees, said in a statement Monday that the decision was a “clear case of retaliation” against union members for speaking out against the Trump administration’s policies.
The Friday rally was part of a union-organized day of action called “Stand for Veterans, Stand for Unions,” with rallies held at VA medical facilities in more than a dozen U.S. cities. VA workers represented by the American Federation of Government Employees, the Service Employees International Union and National Nurses United were among those at Chicago’s rally.
Jesse Brown VA Medical Center, 820 S. Damen Ave., on the Near West Side on Aug. 15, 2025. (Eunice Alpasan / WTTW News)
“Unfair treatment in the workplace will skyrocket,” said Aimee Potter, a social worker and AFGE Local 789 union steward. “Collins claims this will improve veterans’ care, but the truth is, this decision paves the way for mass job cuts, terminations and the hollowing-out of the agency.”
Some VA workers have seen their flexible work schedules and ability to work remotely canceled since the union contract terminations, according to Anne Igoe, SEIU Healthcare Illinois’ vice president for hospitals.
The Trump administration has since also terminated union contracts for employees at the Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and the Federal Emergency Management Agency, according to the Federal News Network, which reported agencies ending the use of office space and resources for union activities and halting grievance and arbitration processes.
Earlier this month, a federal appeals court allowed President Donald Trump to move forward with a March executive order to end collective bargaining at a wide range of federal agencies — a move the administration framed as protecting national security, noting federal unions have pushed back against Trump’s policies.
“The claim that the union workers, including many of us who fought for this country, are a threat to America is ridiculous and insulting,” said Vega, who is represented by SEIU. “The real threat to the veterans, who so proudly serve our country, is Secretary Doug Collins and President Donald Trump. … They’re attacking our union because we stand up to their threats.”
Joining workers during Friday’s rally were U.S. Reps. Raja Krishnamoorthi and Delia Ramirez and state Sen. Lakesia Collins (D-Chicago).
The stripping of union protections for federal employees comes as tens of thousands of federal workers have been fired, left their jobs via deferred resignation programs or placed on leave under the Trump administration’s sweeping efforts to downsize the federal workforce.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Contact Eunice Alpasan: [email protected]
