Federal cuts, benefit delays, errors derailing veterans’ education

The Trump administration has moved forward with a plan to end collective bargaining with federal unions across a swath of government agencies, even after arguing in federal court that it would not do so until a legal battle over an order President Trump signed was over.
The Department of Veterans Affairs said on Wednesday that it had moved to strip labor protections for more than 400,000 of its workers — most of whom are represented by the American Federation of Government Employees, the largest union for federal employees.
The department’s announcement included attacks on union activities and leadership, and Doug Collins, the head of the agency, argued in a statement that the “unions that represent V.A. employees fight against the best interests of veterans while protecting and rewarding bad workers.”
Everett Kelley, the president of the A.F.G.E., said in a statement that the V.A.’s decision was “another clear example of retaliation” against unions that have opposed Mr. Trump’s plans to slash the federal bureaucracy. Mr. Kelley accused Mr. Collins of choosing to “rip up the negotiated union contract” of the majority of his work force.