Chicago JWJ Workers' Rights Board hearing held on Monday, February 25th. About what federal agencies provide to the public, what the workers’ experiences are, and what changes the massive reduction in the work force will cause you. Featuring: Jill Hornick, AFGE Social Security Administration and Colin Smalley, IFPT of Local 777.

This hearing will be followed in the near future by hearings on the work of the departments of Health and Human Services, the Veterans Administration, the Housing and Urban Development and the Food and Drug Administration.

Civil Servants Speak Out! Part #1 - SSA & Army Corp of Engineers

Since President Trump returned to office, he and Elon Musk under the office of DOGE have waged a campaign against federal civil servants. The campaign is taking its toll on dedicated civil servants. These workers provide vital services to all of us. The latest target is the US Postal Service. Trump is planning to dissolve the USPS Board and absorb the independent agency into the commerce department. It’s all about privatizing an important and vital public service.

We will hear from the National Association of Letter Carriers and the American Postal Workers Union on the importance of their work and how this will harm the public that depends on the USPS. Civil servants will share their stories and the challenges and pressures they’re now dealing with. Their call the action – say NO to the dismantling the U.S. Postal Service!

Civil Servants Speak Out #2! - Postal Workers

On March 10, 2025, Chicago Jobs With Justice Workers’ Rights Board held its third hearing in their Civil Servants Speak Out in Bridgeport. We heard from workers at the Environmental Protection Agency and Veterans Administration Hospital.

EPA scientists and staff work around the clock to protect the air we breathe, the water we drink, and the soil around us. They protect our health, safety, and peace of mind. Because they protect us from polluters that put profit over the public good, they’re under attack. Dedicated EPA workers are being fired. The agency is being gutted of resources. With no one around to protect our environment, the public will be at risk. 

VA Hospital workers care for the men and women who served their country. Veterans of World War II, Korean War, Vietnam War, Desert Storm, Iraq & Afghanistan, and other U.S. conflicts depend on the VA Hospital for treatment. The elimination of VA staff will not just be hard on the working families who’ll lose their jobs, but on the veterans who they care for.

We heard from civil servants in the VA and EPA. Their lives have been in turmoil because of the threats of job loss. We heard from the public who suffer because of the cuts, including veterans and community members

Civil Servants Speak Out! Part #3 - VA & EPA

Monday, March 24th we learned about what federal agencies provide to the public, what the workers’ experiences are, and what changes the massive reduction in the work force cause you. 

On March 24th we heard from TSA workers and members of the AFA (Association of Flight Attendants) about the recent workforce cuts and illegal ending of collective bargaining!

Make sure to sign up for the Chicago Jobs with Justice mailing list to stay aware of future events: https://actionnetwork.org/forms/la-huelga-newsletter-sign-up/



Civil Servants Speak Out! #4 TSA & AFA

The economic impacts of the cuts to communities across Illinois are staggering. More than two million children attend the 4,000 K-12 schools across the state. Those schools are slated to lose more than $1.62 billion of funds provided by the Department of Education. For more than 1.2 million students, getting a degree at Illinois junior colleges, four-year colleges, and universities will be more difficult. The Department of Education provides $63 billion in federal student loans, $1 billion in Pell grants for 226,000 students, $72 million to help minority serving institutions and help underrepresented students. It’s not just students that will suffer. Illinois workers also risk falling behind. The Department Education provides more than $233 million to develop, train and educate the Illinois workforce. 

 This hearing happens on the heels of a March 27th, late evening, Trump Administration attack on workers and tax payer funded programs. An Executive Order was signed by Trump, directing the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to terminate collective bargaining rights from nearly 20 agencies. Among those are the Department of Health and Human Services, the Environmental Protection Agency, Department of Veterans Affairs, and many more. As we continue to watch this administration dismantle access to live-saving services, destroy a critical workforce, and blatantly undermine our rights to collective bargaining, the Civil Servants Speak Outs become more of an asset for both federal workers and the working class in general. 

Civil Servants Speak Out #5: Dept. of Education

** HEARING BEGINS AT 37:21**

In the 6th installment of the Workers’ Rights Board Hearing: Civil Servants Speak Out!, workers from Occupational Safety and Health Administration and National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health speak out about cuts in staffing and funding that will make workplaces across the country less safe and more hazardous.

The series has been put on locally by Jobs With Justice Chicago and the Chicago Federation of Labor and this installment teams up with the national AFL-CIO as part of the Department of People Who Work for a Living’s efforts to counter the egregious cuts to federal agencies and services by Elon Musk’s DOGE organization and other Trump Administration efforts. Monday’s hearing in Chicago will feature AFL-CIO Secretary Treasurer Fred Redmond on the panel and is one of many hearings happening across the country during congressional recess next week and will focus on cuts to federal agencies designed to keep workers safe.

Worker health and safety protections are being threatened in Illinois, with at least three regional OSHA field offices and one MSHA office identified by DOGE for closure. Chicago area universities have seen major cuts in grant funding for research from NIH. DOGE claims to have cut over $56 million in NIH funding from Illinois overall, with the vast majority of that impacting Chicago universities. Of the NIH grants cut by DOGE, 6 of them were from the University of Chicago, 10 from Northwestern, and 3 from UIC.

Civil Servants Speak Out! #6 NIOSH & OSHA

Jobs With Justice believes that all workers should have collective bargaining rights, employment security, and a decent standard of living within an economy that works for everyone. We bring together labor, community, student, and faith voices at the national and local levels to win improvements in people’s lives and shape the public discourse on workers’ rights and the economy.

Civil Servants Speak Out! #6 NIOSH & OSHA

Chicago Jobs with Justice

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