Hunter
08/26/25
The Iowa City Federation of Labor plans a picket at the VA Hospital tomorrow.
In a release from the group, it claims Federal employees have faced months of Trump administration attacks at the VA and other agencies, including illegal mass firings, arbitrary hiring freezes, and reckless termination of thousands of probationary employees in already understaffed facilities. Now the Secretary of Veterans Affairs has announced immediate termination of all union contracts with the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) which has for decades protected the rights and working conditions of VA health care workers in Iowa City and across the country.
AFGE members have strongly opposed proposals to cut thousands of VA staff or diminish VA standards of care, and this year have challenged many Trump administration actions in court. In retaliation, AFGE says Trump and VA Secretary Douglas Collins are moving to attack them directly, trying to strip workers of their union contracts, their voice, and their collective defense of VA care.
The picket will highlight the union’s belief that the VA must be accountable to the people and carry out its mission with dedication. They demand that Secretary Collins stop the hiring freeze and cease attacks on dedicated VA workers who believe in the mission of VA and want to deliver the best care possible.
The union also points out in their release that House District 1 Representative Mariannette Miller-Meeks and US Senators Chuck Grassley and Joni Ernst have been “shamefully silent” about attacks on VA workers and patients, and has done nothing to ensure the VA is not dismantled.
Iowa City VA workers report that hiring freezes have already resulted in loss of RN, physician, and patient care staff positions, impacting the medical center’s ability to function. Staff are being moved from one position to another or often working two positions, putting patient and staff safety at risk. Unfilled vacancies currently exist in every area of the hospital.
The picket will be held at the VA Medical Center on Highway 6 West from 3:30 to 5:15 Wednesday.