Senator Bernie Sanders is having a moment celebrating what he calls a win for workers' rights, even if it might be short-lived. The Vermont independent took to social media Friday to applaud a rare bipartisan House vote that would reverse one of President Donald Trump's more controversial executive orders.
What the House Actually Did
On Thursday, the House voted 231-195 to repeal Trump's late March executive order that effectively banned collective bargaining at over two dozen federal agencies. We're talking about more than one million federal workers who suddenly lost the ability to negotiate over workplace conditions, schedules, and other employment terms.
Sanders didn't hold back in his praise, writing on X that he was congratulating House Democrats and the 20 Republicans who crossed party lines to support the measure. "All workers, including federal employees, have the right to be in a union," Sanders declared, urging the Senate to move quickly on the bipartisan provision.
The Senate Math Looks Brutal
Here's where things get tricky. While the House managed to cobble together enough votes with cross-party support, the Senate is a different beast entirely. Republicans overwhelmingly oppose reversing Trump's order, and Democrats would need at least 13 Republican senators to jump ship if they want to overcome a filibuster, assuming every Democrat votes yes.
The Trump administration has defended the executive order as a national security necessity, though critics are quick to point out that many of the affected agencies have only tangential connections to national defense at best.
Sanders Keeps the Labor Fight Going
This isn't the only labor battle Sanders is waging. Earlier this month, he went after Starbucks Corp. (SBUX), accusing the coffee giant of prioritizing executive paychecks while dragging its feet on finalizing contracts with nearly 12,000 unionized baristas. According to Sanders, Starbucks has been stalling on reaching agreements for almost four years, despite workers voting to unionize.
He's also been vocal about Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN) workers, calling for international solidarity following coordinated strikes across 38 countries on Black Friday. The retail giant, meanwhile, continues to show strong price momentum across multiple timeframes, even as labor disputes simmer.
Whether the Senate actually takes up this federal worker union measure remains to be seen. But Sanders is clearly betting that keeping the pressure on, both in government and in the corporate world, is the way forward for organized labor.