VA reverses course, restores union contracts following judge's rebuke

Source: Federal News network

A federal judge in Rhode Island said that the VA’s disregard of her preliminary injunction demonstrated “blatant disrespect" for the court.

Jory Heckman@jheckmanWFED

April 3, 2026 10:35 am

The Department of Veterans Affairs is restoring labor contracts with several of its unions, after a federal judge said the department was defying her order to do so.

The VA is restoring the collective bargaining agreements with six unions that represent a majority of its workforce — including the American Federation of Government Employees, which represents 300,000 VA employees. The labor agreements will temporarily remain in effect while these cases proceed through the court.

AFGE’s National VA Council told its members in an email Thursday evening that VA’s Central Office is “instructing facilities to return to the status quo for all AFGE-represented employees,” including everyone covered by the master agreement before VA unilaterally terminated it on Aug. 5, 2025.

“It appears that VACO is finally providing guidance and instructing facilities to take immediate steps to comply with the court’s orders,” AFGE/NVAC wrote.

Read more: https://federalnewsnetwork.com/unions/2026/04/va-reverses-course-restores-union-contracts-following-judges-rebuke/