Trump's Attack On Workers Immediately Benefits Billionaires

As soon as he came into office, Trump made it more difficult for workers to join a union, and billionaires immediately benefitted

The Daily is a citizen-written newsletter focused on democracy and freedom in the heart of our nation. To support our work, please consider subscribing.

During his first term, Donald Trump was the most anti-worker president by record in a century. Trump was even more anti-worker than Ronald Reagan, but still, many people who work hard for their paychecks fell for Trump’s promises of no taxes on tips and no taxes on overtime.

Trump is approaching his third week in office, and Republicans have been in control of Congress for a month, and there are still taxes on tips and overtime. There isn’t a single piece of legislation on Trump’s promises anywhere close to a vote in Congress.

The situation is worse for workers than unfulfilled promises.

Joe Biden spent his presidency trying to make it easier for workers to get overtime pay and to join a union.

Biden’s new overtime pay rule, which was supposed to take effect this year, would have given millions of workers access to overtime pay. Texas sued over the rule last fall. A federal judge blocked it, and now that Trump is in the White House, it is as good as dead.

Democrats and progressives often make the mistake of thinking that being pro-union is the same as policies that benefit workers. Only 8% of private sector workers are in a union, which is why the Biden administration tried to adopt policies that were not limited to pro-union policies, but even if workers wanted to join a union, Trump took immediate action to make that step much more difficult.

Trump essentially shut down the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) by removing the pro-union General Counsel and a member of the board. These removals left the NLRB without a quorum, so the board can’t meet and decide anything.

The NLRB still exists in name but is basically shut down.

Trump’s Attack On Workers Benefits The Billionaires