For Immediate Release

AFSCME’s Saunders on mass layoffs at the Department of Education: This is Project 2025 in action

WASHINGTON – AFSCME President Lee Saunders released the following statement after the Department of Education announced it will be eliminating nearly half of the agency’s staff:

“These mass layoffs are Project 2025 in action, and they have one goal – to make it easier for billionaires and anti-union extremists to give themselves massive tax breaks at the expense of working people. Today’s announcement from the Department of Education is just the beginning of what’s to come. These layoffs threaten the well-being and educational opportunities for millions of children across the country and those seeking higher education. The dedicated public service workers at public schools, colleges and universities deserve better. Elections may have consequences, but we will not sit by while billionaires like Elon Musk and Linda McMahon tear apart public services piece by piece. We will keep speaking out and finding ways to fight back.”

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AFSCME’s 1.4 million members provide the vital services that make America happen. With members in communities across the nation, serving in hundreds of different occupations — from nurses to corrections officers, childcare providers to sanitation workers — AFSCME advocates for fairness in the workplace, excellence in public services and freedom and opportunity for all working families. 

AFSCME’s 1.4 million members provide the vital services that make America happen. With members in communities across the nation, serving in hundreds of different occupations — from nurses to corrections officers, child care providers to sanitation workers — AFSCME advocates for fairness in the workplace, excellence in public services and freedom and opportunity for all working families.

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American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, AFL-CIO
1625 L Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20036-5687
Telephone: (202) 429-1145
Fax: (202) 429-1120

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