High Country Times

Education and the Workforce Committee Chairwoman Virginia Foxx is pressing for accountability regarding the Biden-Harris administration's use of taxpayer funds to support government unions. Foxx addressed Department of Labor (DOL) Acting Secretary Julie Su, National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) Chairman Lauren McFerran, and Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) Chair Charlotte Burrows, expressing concerns about the administration's concessions to labor unions.

Foxx criticized the administration's reluctance to return federal employees to full-time, in-person work and accused it of concealing "official time," where federal employees conduct union activities during work hours. She noted that previous administrations reported on such practices, but the current Office of Personnel Management has not released these reports and has removed past ones from its website.

In her letters, Foxx stated: “However, instead of applying that mission to all U.S. workers, the Biden-Harris administration has sought to do favors for its political allies. Time and again, the Biden-Harris administration has promoted one-sided policies for the benefit of union bosses.”

The letters further claimed: “Following the wishes of federal labor unions, Biden-Harris agencies—including [DOL, the NLRB, and EEOC]—have failed to return their employees to full-time, in-person work, as was the case before March 2020. The Biden-Harris administration has also covered up the practice of 'official time,' which permits federal employees to engage in union activities during work hours instead of focusing on the public service they were hired to do."

Examples provided include negotiations over workplace issues such as cubicle desk panel heights and dress codes at taxpayer expense: “While it would be impossible to list all instances of negotiations over federal workplace minutia...”

Foxx requested detailed information on agency spending from Fiscal Years 2021-2023 related to collective bargaining agreements and union activities. This includes compensation for negotiation duties, travel expenses for union-related activities, costs associated with experts and mediators in disputes, administrative support expenses, space provided to unions by federal agencies, official time expenses and usage statistics by DOL, NLRB, and EEOC employees.

The letters can be read on their respective websites.