Motion filed in DHS Suit

Meanwhile, the group of unions pursuing a similar suit against similar rules at the Department of Homeland Security has filed a brief asking the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit to let stand a lower judge’s ruling that blocked several labor and appeals rights provisions of the DHS rules. As at DoD, the primary issue is whether the department exceeded its flexibilities granted to it, in particular regarding the department’s ability to nullify negotiated contracts. The lower court’s decision said that under the DHS rules, bargaining could become essentially meaningless, given the leeway the department would have under the rules to declare contracts unenforceable.