Federal appeals court allows Trump to remove members of national labor boards

A federal appeals court on Friday ruled in favor of the Trump administration by allowing President Donald Trump to remove members of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) and the Merit Systems Protection Board.

The ruling comes after a lower court judge said the president lacked the authority to remove NLRB member Gwynne Wilcox, whom he fired in January after he returned to the Oval Office. Wilcox sued over the dismissal, arguing a board member can be fired only for "neglect of duty or malfeasance in office" and only after a formal process is completed.

Attorneys for the president argued limits to Trump's power to remove board members are unconstitutional, and that he should be allowed to dismiss labor board members at will to ensure "democratic accountability."

The three-judge panel of the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals voted 2-1 to allow Trump to remove Wilcox and Cathy Harris of the Merit Systems Protection Board, who were both appointed by former President Joe Biden, per Politico.

The NLRB was created by Congress to resolve disputes over alleged unfair labor practices. Wilcox was most recently approved by the Senate in 2023 to serve a second five-year term.

The order clears the way for Trump to remove the head of a third labor board, the Federal Labor Relations Authority, who was recently reinstated after a judge ruled she was improperly fired.

Misty Severi is a news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.