Economy, Jobs and Trade

Collective bargaining for public employees

26 public statements from 2026 candidates · 1 related bill

§1The range of views

Why this matters: It affects public workers' pay and job protections, and how much government services cost taxpayers.

Drafted by AI, then checked for neutral wording in a separate AI review. It describes the question and the main positions, not any candidate's view. Facts link to their sources.

Whether government workers such as teachers, police officers and federal employees can negotiate as a union over pay and working conditions; a 2025 executive order removed union bargaining rights at many federal agencies, citing national security, and the House passed a bill in December 2025 to cancel that order, which the Senate has not voted on.1,2

  1. Limit or end union bargaining for most public employees
  2. Keep current rules, including the 2025 order's limits at federal agencies
  3. Restore bargaining rights at the federal agencies the 2025 order excluded, as the House-passed Protect America's Workforce Act would
  4. Guarantee bargaining rights for public employees nationwide

These options describe policies, not people. The order is not a ranking.

§2What candidates have said

Why this matters: Statements candidates made publicly, summarized in plain words with a link to where they said it. Candidates who haven't spoken publicly on this issue aren't listed.

Drafted by AI from the public sources cited. Each sentence links to its source.

Limit or end union bargaining for most public employees (2)

  • Pro-Life ID Governor
    His campaign website says a union with majority support should not be allowed to bargain for all government employees.3
  • Victor L. Scoggin TN Governor
    His campaign website lists no government unions among his issues.4

Restore bargaining rights at the federal agencies the 2025 order excluded, as the House-passed Protect America's Workforce Act would (5)

  • Scott Wiener CA-11
    His campaign website says he would restore and write into law collective bargaining rights for federal employees.5
  • Kimberly Overman FL-12
    Her campaign platform says she supports collective bargaining rights for public-sector workers, including restoring and protecting bargaining rights for federal employees and Veterans Affairs workers.6
  • Alani Bankhead MT Senate
    Her campaign website says she would pass the Protect America's Workforce Act to restore collective bargaining for the federal workers who lost it under a 2025 executive order.7
  • Sam Forstag MT-1
    His campaign website says he would pass the Protect America's Workforce Act, which it says would give back bargaining rights to over a million public servants at the Bureau of Land Management, the VA and roughly 30 other federal agencies.8
  • Maggie Goodlander NH-2
    Her campaign website lists the Protect America's Workforce Act, which passed the House and would reverse the executive order that removed collective bargaining protections from federal workers, among the bills it highlights.9

Guarantee bargaining rights for public employees nationwide (3)

  • Connie Chan CA-11
    Her campaign website says she would restore collective bargaining for federal workers and cosponsor the Protect America's Workforce Act and a bill guaranteeing public employees the right to organize and bargain collectively.10
  • Mike Sell FL-4
    His campaign's platform says federal labor standards should be used to remove the restrictions on public-sector unions that Florida enacted in May 2026, and it lists him as opposing those restrictions.11,12
  • Daniel Biss IL-9
    His campaign website says he will defend the right of federal employees, teachers, nurses and other public servants to collectively bargain, and will work to ensure every teacher in the country can join a union and bargain over wages and benefits.13,14

Statements that don't match one option (16)

  • Mike Cargile CA-35
    His campaign website says public employee unions should be able to bargain collectively but should not be able to strike or engage in political activity or campaigns.15
  • John Hickenlooper CO Senate
    His campaign website says he has opposed the administration's efforts to revoke federal employees' collective bargaining rights.16
  • Melat Kiros CO-1
    Her platform supports protecting the right to strike, including for federal employees, and legalizing strikes by public employees.17
  • Sarah McBride DE-AL
    Her campaign website says she will use her vote to push back on the administration's actions against public sector unions.18
  • Eliott Rodriguez FL-27
    His campaign website says he would push for laws that protect government workers, such as the Public Service Freedom to Negotiate Act.19
  • Kaylee Peterson ID-1
    Her campaign website says she will protect collective bargaining by securing rights for federal employees and all workers.20
  • Kelly Thompson IN-3
    Her campaign website says she would strengthen educators' ability to organize and collectively bargain.21
  • Mikel Wein KY-5
    His campaign website lists the Protect America's Workforce Act of 2025, which it says reverses an executive order limiting collective bargaining for federal employees, among the pending legislation on its Wealth page.22
  • Andy Ellis MD Governor
    His campaign website says he would sponsor legislation giving public sector workers the right to strike.23
  • Adrian Boafo MD-5
    His campaign website says he would protect the pay, retirement security, health benefits and collective bargaining rights of civilian federal workers and servicemembers.24
  • Hannah M. Pingree ME Governor
    Her campaign website says she would protect and expand the collective bargaining rights of educators and school staff.25
  • Mark Cohen NE-3
    His campaign website says proposals to reduce or end public employees' right to negotiate would be bad for workers, public safety and citizens who want responsive services.26
  • Chris Pappas NH Senate
    His campaign website says he introduced bipartisan legislation and forced a vote to restore union rights the Trump administration removed from federal workers.27
  • Rob Menendez NJ-8
    Its organized labor page lists passing the Public Service Freedom to Negotiate Act, along with the PRO Act, among his goals.28
  • Aaron D. Ford NV Governor
    His campaign website says he supports collective bargaining rights for public workers, including graduate student workers and other non-classified employees of Nevada's higher education system.29,30
  • Amy Acton OH Governor
    Her campaign website says she would fight efforts to weaken unions and collective bargaining rights, and would enforce collective bargaining laws and crack down on wage theft and worker misclassification.31

§3Related bills

Why this matters: Bills from 2023–2026 that bear on this issue, with how Congress handled them.