Part of a recent rules package passed by the Republican-controlled House includes a measure that could reduce the wages of federal workers to just $1 per year.
Representative H. Morgan Griffith (R-Va.) and his Republican colleagues pushed to reintroduce the 19th-century Holman Rule, which was eliminated in 1983. The new Holman Rule, like the old one, is an appropriations measure that allows members of Congress to amend federal workers’ salaries as they see fit.
What’s Going On Here?
In one sense, the move is unsurprising. Republicans have long been hostile to working people and unions. But the new Holman Rule is part of the Right’s effort to micromanage the government and impose even greater control over federal offices and agencies.
In mid-December of last year, President-elect Donald Trump’s transition team sought a list of climate researchers from the Department of Energy. If Trump or his cronies in Congress obtain such a list, the Holman Rule might be used to force climate scientists from the EPA by reducing their pay.
The Trump transition team later made a similar request of the State Department, asking for a list of programs or bureaus that promote gender equality and women’s rights.
Fighting Back
Labor advocates and Democrats expressed vigorous opposition to the rule. Maureen Gilman, the legislative director for the National Treasury Employees Union, criticized the reinstatement of the rule in the context of Trump’s pledge to freeze government hiring:
“This is part of a very chilling theme that federal workers are seeing right now.”
Democratic Representatives Don Beyer (Va.), Steny Hoyer (Md.), Gerry Connolly (Va.), Eleanor Holmes Norton (D.C.), and John Delaney (Md.) released a joint statement in opposition to the new Holman Rule, saying:
“Today, the House of Representatives will consider a rules package that aims to further undermine civil service employee protections by stripping away necessary safeguards. Reinstating the so-called ‘Holman Rule’ would allow any Member of Congress to simply offer an amendment that could reduce the salary of any federal employee, or eliminate a federal employee’s position without hearings, testimony, or due process.
“Federal employees work in every congressional district to provide vital services that help keep our nation healthy, safe, and strong, but with this rule House Republicans would instead treat these civil servants like political pawns and scapegoats. We urge the GOP leadership to withdraw this harmful provision, and show support for the federal workforce.”
Though things look bleak, there may yet be hope. The measure slashing federal workers’ pay is part of the same rules package that included measures to shut down an independent congressional ethics committee. But public outcry caused Republicans to back down earlier this week, leaving the committee in place. With enough agitation, the Holman Rule, too, can be abolished.
Featured image via YouTube video.
