Donald Trump’s Potential Second Presidency: A Threat to Worker Protections and Labor Rights

Attorney Brian Petruska expressed to The Huffington Post that a second term for Donald Trump could severely undermine the rights of workers and labor protections throughout the United States. He remarked, “The potential changes—without exaggeration—are incredibly damaging. Virtually every type of worker protection is at risk.”

“We may be reverting to labor laws reminiscent of the pre-1930s era in this nation,” articulated Petruska, who represents the Laborers’ International Union of North America. “I’m not exaggerating; that’s exactly the reality we could face.”

During Trump’s initial presidency, there was a notable rollback of labor regulations established during the Obama administration, carried out by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). Under a Republican-led NLRB, several pivotal rulings that enhanced union and worker rights were overturned. This includes making it more feasible for smaller groups to form unions, expediting the election process for unionization, and increasing accountability for parent companies regarding labor violations committed by their contractors and franchisees.

If Trump secures re-election, Petruska predicts that he would most likely appoint an anti-labor general counsel to the NLRB, undermining the impact of Biden’s significantly pro-labor appointee, Jennifer Abruzzo. This would reverse the agency’s recent pro-worker reforms. Additionally, Trump could shift the balance of the NLRB board to a Republican majority as individual terms expire, which would further weaken labor protections.

Moreover, Trump and his Republican counterparts may seek to drastically cut the budget for the NLRB, potentially allowing it to diminish, similar to what happened during his first term. Such budget cuts would severely hamper the enforcement of current labor laws and protections, making workers increasingly susceptible to exploitation.

Perhaps the most concerning issue is that federal judges nominated by Trump are already open to constitutional objections to the NLRB’s framework raised by companies such as Elon Musk’s SpaceX. With conservatives holding a 6-3 majority in the Supreme Court, which has been influenced by Trump, there exists a real concern that the Court might ultimately declare the agency unconstitutional—nullifying nearly 100 years of labor law precedent and transforming the landscape of work rights.

This anti-worker stance corresponds with the objectives of conservative think tanks and corporate entities, including Musk, who have long sought to diminish unions and worker protections in every way feasible within legal parameters—essentially utilizing legality as a facade. A second Trump administration, endorsed by a Supreme Court sympathetic to Republican interests, poses a significant threat. It could finally pave the way for the dismantling of labor rights under the pretense of upholding the law.

Four more years of Trump could imply the dismantling of decades of hard-fought labor rights. As union membership has waned, so too have the wages of average workers in comparison to the affluent. The continued erosion of labor rights risks exacerbating this alarming trend, intensifying inequality, heightening safety concerns for workers, and leaving them with minimal if any recourse against mistreatment by emboldened corporations eager to extract more profits from their workforce.

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