Conservative senator seeks to ban official time at federal agencies

A conservative senator this week introduced legislation that would end the longstanding practice by which union officials in federal agencies can be paid for time spent on representational work, drawing outcry from labor groups.

When Congress enacted the 1978 Civil Service Reform Act, lawmakers instituted several restrictions on union rights not present in the private sector: federal employee unions cannot bargain over pay, they cannot go on strike, and they are required to represent all workers in a bargaining unit, not just dues-paying members.

But in exchange for that last restriction, Congress provided an additional way for unions to take on the increased workload of representing non-union members: official time, in which union officials in federal agencies are paid their normal government salary when working on representational matters rather than their normal duties as federal employees.

That includes negotiations with management, pursuing grievance or Federal Labor Relations Authority proceedings or litigation on behalf of one or more bargaining unit employees, as well as representing an employee during disciplinary investigations or proceedings. But it doesn’t include internal union business, like soliciting people to join, electing union leaders or collecting dues.

A new bill from conservative Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, would rend that compromise by outlawing official time. The No Union Time on the Taxpayer’s Dime Act (S. 4868) would ban official time by removing it from the U.S. Code and mandating that “any activities performed by an employee relating to the business of a labor organization shall be performed during the time the employee is in a non-duty status.”

Lee cites an Office of Personnel Management report that found that in 2016, federal workers spent 3.6 million hours on official time, which amounts to $177.2 million in federal spending. According to OPM’s FedScope database, in 2016 there were 1.2 million bargaining unit federal employees, and the cost figure amounts to 0.014% of the $1.2 trillion discretionary budget that year, per the Congressional Budget Office.

“Taxpayers should not be burdened with the cost of federal employees engaging in union activities,” Lee said in a statement. “Federal salaries are funded by the taxpayers, who rightfully expect federal employees to work on their assigned duties while on the clock. The No Union Time on the Taxpayer’s Dime Act ensures that union-related activities are conducted on personal time and at personal expense.”

Everett Kelley, national president of the American Federation of Government Employees, the government’s largest labor union, dismissed Lee’s bill as a “cynical” effort to deprive workers of union representation.

“It’s no surprise that Senator Lee proudly notes this legislation is endorsed by Heritage Action, the sister organization of the masterminds behind Project 2025,” he said. “Ultimately, this bill is part of that broader set of policy initiatives meant to strip federal employees of their rights, fire patriotic civil servants illegally, undermine the ability of labor unions to represent those employees when they are illegally fired and thus make it easier to stack the federal government with corrupt flunkies and political hacks who will put partisan loyalties above the law and constitution.”