Trump Union Shake-Up Rattles Portsmouth Shipyard Workers

The Trump administration has abruptly terminated collective bargaining agreements with two unions at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery, Maine, stripping several hundred workers of formal contract protections that governed everything from pay to scheduling. Union leaders say they were notified last week that the deals were over, effective immediately, and workers are now unsure how overtime, travel and safety rules will work without written agreements backing them up.

One of the affected unions is the American Federation of Government Employees. National vice president David Gonzalez told Maine Public the move "leaves workers more vulnerable" by wiping out grievance rights and other protections that had been in place for years. Gonzalez said AFGE is weighing legal options, noting that unions have already won injunctions elsewhere in the federal workforce. According to the same outlet, the Portsmouth Metal Trades Council's master agreement is still covered by a court injunction for now, although council leaders say the uncertainty is already weighing on members.

Which unions were affected

Nate Proper, president of United Brotherhood of Carpenters & Joiners Local 3073, told the Bangor Daily News that his local, which represents about 300 shipyard workers, received a memo last week saying its collective bargaining agreement had been terminated. Without those negotiated rules, Proper warned, individual employees could have far less leverage if disputes break out over travel, detail lengths or overtime assignments. The Department of Defense did not respond to requests for comment from local reporters, according to that reporting.

Administration's rationale

The terminations flow from two executive orders the White House issued last year that officials say exempt agencies with "national security missions" from standard federal collective bargaining requirements, as outlined by the White House. The Associated Press has tracked how those orders have been rolled out and the wave of legal challenges they have triggered across multiple federal agencies.

Workers warn of safety and scheduling impacts

Union leaders say tearing up the contracts risks ripple effects for safety, staffing and overtime at one of the Navy's key submarine yards. Local officials warn that looser scheduling rules could heighten risk in a place where precision work is part of the job description. "It's really going to cause material harm to the people who are fixing the machines that are enabling us to execute the mission of national defence," United Brotherhood president Nate Proper told Ship & Offshore. Portsmouth Metal Trades Council president Alana Schaeffer told Maine Public that her council's agreement is still "shielded for now by a court injunction," but said the legal limbo has already driven up anxiety among workers.

Legal fight expected

The broader legal fight over the executive orders is already under way. In March, a federal judge in Providence ordered the Department of Veterans Affairs to restore its master collective bargaining agreement for roughly 320,000 workers, a ruling that set off appeals and accusations of contempt when the agency moved to re-terminate the contract, according to reporting by Stars and Stripes. Labor attorneys say outcomes in those cases could become important test cases for how courts view similar contract terminations at defense facilities such as Portsmouth.

Local elected officials have been pushing to shore up the shipyard workforce. Senators Susan Collins, Angus King and Jeanne Shaheen have urged faster processing of civilian hires and highlighted the yard's role in national security, according to the U.S. Senate. Union leaders say they will keep pursuing legal and political strategies while rank and file workers wait to see how much their day-to-day reality on the waterfront really changes.