Union alleges Bureau of Prisons in contempt for failing to reinstate collective bargaining agreement

The union representing 30,000 Bureau of Prisons employees is asking a federal judge to hold the agency in contempt, alleging that prison leadership has refused to follow the court's order to immediately restore its collective bargaining agreement.

Bureau of Prisons Director William Marshall terminated the collective bargaining agreement on Sept. 25, 2025. He alleged the union posed an "obstacle to progress" and said it was not the "kind of union" he could support.

In its motion for contempt, the union alleged that bureau leadership is stonewalling and refusing to allow the union to resume its usual operations, including by allowing people to have "official" union time.

"There ain't no union," a BOP official allegedly told the employee, according to the motion. The employee was terminated on Oct. 5.

In another allegation, the union said that Marshall told people on Sept. 29, hours before the court ruling hit the docket, that he had no plans to enforce the terms of the collective bargaining agreement unless he received direct orders from the White House.

The Bureau of Prisons declined to comment, citing the pending litigation.

On Oct. 2, however, the Justice Department filed a formal "notice of compliance" with the court. In that filing, it said BOP was "aware" of the court's order and "complying with its terms."

It also added that the Justice Department did not expect the U.S. District Court would be supervising "every alleged failure" by BOP to comply with the collective bargaining agreement.

In March 2025, President Trump issued an executive order that sought to exclude federal offices involved in national security or intelligence work from having collective bargaining agreements with staff. That order also applied to the Justice Department, which includes the Bureau of Prisons.

But after the order was made public, the BOP allowed its union to continue operating for approximately six months before terminating the collective bargaining agreement.

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