Democratic governors face off with unions at home

Politico

6 days ago

With help from Nick Niedzwiadek
QUICK FIX
WHAT HAPPENS IN THE HOUSE…: Democratic governors who may be eyeing 2028 presidential runs have been at odds with public sector-unions in their states over a variety of issues, including return-to-office policies and the impact of the Trump administration's immigration crackdown.
In Colorado, state workers sought to join a lawsuit after Gov. Jared Polis allegedly instructed employees to provide Immigration and Customs Enforcement with information on undocumented immigrants. Unions have also sparred with California Gov. Gavin Newsom over his order calling state workers back to the office for at least four days a week, with three of them securing eleventh-hour temporary exemptions.
And Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz's office has been engaged in a tense bargaining process with state employees over health care benefits and paid parental leave.
President Donald Trump's appeal among working-class voters was already upending the historical alliance between Democrats and unions. Now, a tough budget season has put some of the party's aspiring talent deep into negotiations that are creating new fissures in a Democratic coalition that hasn't yet coalesced around a message for 2026, let alone 2028.
Newsom and Polis are seen as contenders for 2028. Walz, who was his party's vice presidential nominee last year, has waffled on whether he'll do a top-of-the-ticket run.
'Democrats are going to have a hard time getting elected if unions are not ... supporting them actively and vocally,' said Brian Melendez, former chair of the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party.
Unions, which often play difficult with Democrats before backing them anyway, are warning that workers are increasingly cynical of both parties. Some high-profile unions stopped short of endorsing presidential candidates last election cycle.
'If Democrats want to be the party of working people, they can't just show up at Labor Day parades,' said Megan Dayton, president of the Minnesota Association of Professional Employees. 'They have to be at the table. They have to bargain in good faith.'
Walz's office and Newsom's office did not respond to requests for comment. Ally Sullivan, deputy press secretary for Polis, said in a statement that the governor is 'proud of the work his administration has done' to expand wages and benefits for state employees.
Lawrence has more for Pro subscribers.
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AROUND THE AGENCIES
G-G-G-G-UNIT: Trump last week signed an executive order creating another class of federal employees who are exempt from civil service protections and are expected to leave their positions at the end of a president's term.
The new Schedule G will only apply to 'non-career' workers whose roles entail 'policy-making or policy-advocating work.' It is unclear how many roles or federal employees would fall under this new classification, but the White House specifically references the Department of Veterans Affairs as an agency that will benefit from the change.
A number of public policy experts say it appears largely duplicative of the long-established Schedule C, as FedScoop reports.
F for simplicity: The creation of a Schedule G further underscores the gangliness of the Trump administration's Schedule Policy/Career designation for career staffers. That category was formerly known as Schedule F when it was conceived in Trump's first term, but was rebranded in a January executive order after becoming a Democratic talking point on the campaign trail. Now there are Schedules A, B,C, D, E, and G with the proposed P/C squeezed in where F logically would sit.
In the States
RIPPLE EFFECT: New York Gov. Kathy Hochul warned that the cancellation of 'The Late Show with Stephen Colbert' could risk hundreds of local jobs after the state gave CBS $16 million in tax breaks and grants in 2014 to keep the show in the city.
'The loss of 'The Late Show with Stephen Colbert' is more than just the end of a television show,' a Hochul spokesperson told Gothamist. 'It means the loss of hundreds of good-paying production jobs, lost income for dozens of vendors, and a hit to the local businesses that rely on the show's daily audiences.'
The deal was inked amid the show's transition from former host David Letterman to Colbert and included $5 million to restore the Ed Sullivan Theater where the show is recorded.
Gothamist has more.
CAL/OSHA REVIEW: California's workplace safety arm does not have enough staff to keep workers safe at work, a report released last week from the state auditor general found.
Nearly a third of jobs at the state's Division of Occupational Safety and Health, also known as Cal/OSHA, were vacant last fiscal year. The report also noted that the agency closed a number of complaints before conducting on-site inspections.
A spokesperson for Cal/OSHA told the Los Angeles Times that they have taken steps to improve staffing and operations at specific offices.
More state news: "From green icon to housing villain: The fall of California's landmark environmental law,' from our Jeremy B. White.
Even more: "Prison staffing woes spiked New York's overtime costs,' from our Nick Reisman for Pro subscribers.
Unions
BUILDING SUPPORT: 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East voted last week to endorse Democratic nominee Zohran Mamdani for mayor.
The union, which represents 200,000 health care workers, backed former Gov. Andrew Cuomo during the Democratic primary and is the latest of several unions pivoting toward endorsing Mamdani's upstart bid for mayor.
The New York State Nurses Association, the United Federation of Teachers and District Council 37 — which represents municipal workers — have also endorsed Mamdani.
Our Maya Kaufman and Emily Ngo have more for Pro subscribers.
HEADING FOR THE EXIT: Lloyd Howell Jr. resigned as executive director of the NFL Players Association last week after documents revealed he expensed the union for two trips to strip clubs, ESPN reported.
His resignation comes amid a flurry of damaging news reports that claimed he worked part-time for a private equity firm seeking ownership in NFL teams and that he was a defendant in a gender discrimination lawsuit at his former employer Booz Allen.
Howell could not be immediately reached for comment by ESPN.
Quite the transition: 'ChatGPT-maker OpenAI brings on former Sen. Laphonza Butler,' from our Christine Mui.
In the Workplace
AI MAX DEALS: Some of the offers that artificial intelligence companies are doling out massive amounts of money to recruit highly-coveted talent to get ahead of competitors.
Alexandr Wang, an entrepreneur hired by Meta to lead its new AI lab, has extended offers to AI researchers and investors that mirror NBA offseason contracts.
'He's offered more than 10 of OpenAI's researchers eye-watering pay packages of $300 million over four years, including $100 million the first year, according to people familiar with the matter,' WSJ's Berber Jin, Keach Hagey and Ben Cohen write.
More workplace news: ''United' WNBA All-Stars wear 'Pay Us What You Owe Us' shirts,' from ESPN.
Even more: 'Maryland had largest single-month decrease in federal government jobs in almost 3 decades, report finds,' from WTOP.
Immigration
A TOUGH SELL: The Trump administration is working to tap retired immigration officers amid plummeting morale and grueling hours that have made the job a tough sell for recruiters, The New York Times reported.
Officials have reached out to former officers directly in addition to posting openings on LinkedIn, while offering large bonuses to individuals who apply within the next two weeks.
The hiring push comes just after Congress approved roughly $170 billion in funding for immigration-related enforcement and as the Trump administration announced a goal of hiring 10,000 ICE officers.
WHAT WE'RE READING
— 'The Cities Where College Grads Are Actually Landing Jobs,' from The Wall Street Journal.
— 'Nantucket's Workers Are Living on the Margins,' from The New York Times.
— 'How the 2017 Trump tax cuts ballooned the 'big, beautiful bill',' from our Taylor Miller Thomas, Paula Friedrich and Jonathan Lai.
THAT'S YOUR SHIFT!