Labor News & Commentary February 7 AFL-CIO launches a campaign to push back against Musk & more

https://onlabor.org/february-7-2025/

By Holt McKeithan

Holt McKeithan is a student at Harvard Law School.

In today’s News and Commentary, the NLRB withdraws its objections to SpaceX’s constitutional challenge, Whole Foods asks the NLRB to set aside a union election in Philadelphia, and the AFL-CIO launches a campaign to push back against Musk.

The NLRB filed a letter with the Fifth Circuit indicating it would not address SpaceX’s challenge to the agency’s constitutionality. John has been tracking the progress of various constitutional challenges to the Board, none of which has yet been endorsed by a court. SpaceX’s primary argument is that the Board’s structure is unconstitutional because it limits the removal of ALJs and Board members. As of yet, no interested parties have stepped in to address SpaceX’s constitutional arguments in the NLRB’s stead.

Less than two weeks ago, workers at a Philadelphia Whole Foods grocery store voted to unionize. They were the first group of workers at the Amazon-owned chain to form a union. Now, the grocer is asking the NLRB to set aside that election. While Whole Foods alleged the union unlawfully interfered with the election, UFCW Local 1776 says that the claims are baseless and a stall tactic to delay bargaining


The AFL-CIO is launching the Department of People Who Work for a Living to push back against Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency. The group plans to take action through rallies and advertisements in front of key agencies who’s budgets are being slashed. “The government can work for billionaires or it can work for working people—but not both,” said AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler. “