Laid-off federal employees can access legal advice under new union-backed network

As federal employees continue to face widespread layoffs, unions and advocacy groups on Wednesday launched a network to provide legal advice to government workers. 

The goal of the Rise Up: Federal Workers Legal Defense Network is to recruit attorneys to provide individual guidance to federal employees who fear losing their jobs or have already lost them. 

“Our network is already fighting back against illegal firings and other abuse of federal workers, but thousands of federal workers still need legal advice and representation,” according to the coalition’s website. “That means we need thousands of lawyers to help.” 

The network directs federal employees who believe they were wrongfully terminated or have concerns about their rights to submit information and be matched with an available attorney. From there, respondents will be directed to contact the lawyer for an initial conversation and a potential consultation, both of which would be free. 

Participating organizations include AFL-CIO, the American Federation of Government Employees, National Treasury Employees Union, the national legal organization Democracy Forward and the nonpartisan good government group the Partnership for Public Service. 

Many of the groups are leading lawsuits against the Trump administration. 

“The Federal Workers Legal Defense Network is a welcome resource for federal employees whose careers and livelihoods are impacted by the administration’s attack on the federal workforce,” said NTEU National President Doreen Greenwald in a statement. “NTEU applauds the thousands of attorneys across the nation willing to volunteer their time to advocate on behalf of career civil servants. Programs like this demonstrate a basic truth about the federal workforce: Civil servants, the work they do and the services they provide, matter deeply to this country and American taxpayers.”

The Partnership’s President and CEO Max Stier posted on X that the network would stand against the Elon Musk-backed Department of Government Efficiency, which has spearheaded many of the government workforce cuts. 

“No one should lose their job because of an unelected billionaire’s agenda,” he wrote. 

The coalition’s website notes that any legal representation after the conversation and consultation is at the attorney’s discretion and could be free, discounted or their normal billing rate.

Federal employees can request legal assistance here.