After cutting union contracts, VA redirects
$45M to veterans
Center Square,
by
Brett Rowland
Original Article
Posted By: sunset,
8/23/2025 9:50:30 PM
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs officials announced Friday that the agency is redirecting nearly $45 million from public union costs to care for veterans. "VA staff will now get to spend more time with Veterans, VA facilities can focus on treating Veterans, and VA can manage its staff according to Veterans' needs and national security requirements, not union demands," VA Secretary Doug Collins said. Earlier this month, Veterans Affairs canceled its contracts with most unions on Wednesday, saying the unions fight against the best interests of veterans. When VA canceled those contacts, it cut the number of VA bargaining unit employees from about 375,000 to about 7,000.
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Reply 1 - Posted by:
Catherine 8/23/2025 10:00:47 PM (No. 1994596)
This does my heart so good. Best headline ever.
50 people like this.
Reply 2 - Posted by:
Flyball Dogs 8/23/2025 10:05:54 PM (No. 1994597)
This group of cabinet secretaries continues to outdo itself.
Best
Cabinet
Ever.
54 people like this.
Reply 3 - Posted by:
seamusm 8/23/2025 10:28:02 PM (No. 1994599)
Well, that's a million Dem voters - at least. All these layoffs make it even more critical that we support GOP candidates, and show up and vote. Else all these successes will be for naught.
37 people like this.
Reply 4 - Posted by:
stablemoney 8/23/2025 10:32:55 PM (No. 1994602)
Democrats pay unions for votes with taxpayer money. Look under any rock and taxpayer money is being stolen.
36 people like this.
Reply 5 - Posted by:
crashnburn 8/23/2025 11:02:32 PM (No. 1994608)
Awesome. Now, cancel, or at least not renew all union contracts. Then pass legislation making government unions illegal. Much closer to being permanent than an EO.
29 people like this.
Reply 6 - Posted by:
Lawsy0 8/24/2025 12:47:51 AM (No. 1994625)
I thought government unions were already illegal! When my hubby went to the VA, I often went along since he had became hard of hearing. My veteran of WWII and the 'Korean Action' saw no need for a male admin at the VA to wear women's clothes on duty. One dude kept insisting we call him "Ma'am." He couldn't provide a rule, or even a clause in a rule. DDH called them as he saw them.
15 people like this.
Reply 7 - Posted by:
billa57 8/24/2025 7:04:09 AM (No. 1994649)
Even FDR said that Federal employees should never have unions.
12 people like this.
Reply 8 - Posted by:
4Liberty2020 8/24/2025 7:37:18 AM (No. 1994667)
Had worked at the VA for almost 20 years union- free. The slackers or those with poor performance records screamed for unions to come in, eventually, they did succeed and it was downhill from there, the veterans lost.
Hopefully, with the unions out, the VA can totally focusr on Veterans care.
Thanking and Praising God for placing President Trump in this leadership role at this time in history.
20 people like this.
Reply 9 - Posted by:
udanja99 8/24/2025 7:55:18 AM (No. 1994676)
With the exception of 0bama, almost every president in my memory has vowed to fix the VA. Trump is the only one to actually accomplish a way to get there. God bless him!
21 people like this.
Reply 10 - Posted by:
DCGIRL 8/24/2025 8:12:09 AM (No. 1994687)
The VA in the past has been a disaster. I have known veterans that asked for help and never received it. After seeing how the veterans were treated, I supported privatizing this agency. Provide the veterans medical cards that would be honored at any hospital or physician. Let's see how this latest move works out.
12 people like this.
Reply 11 - Posted by:
Strike3 8/24/2025 8:15:37 AM (No. 1994690)
Nothing makes me angrier than the need for organizations that raise money to build homes for disabled and wounded veterans. The US Government should be supplying every need for those hurt in the service of their country. They encourage you and sometimes force you to carry a rifle and fight half-way around the world and then abandon those who are injured. More money is given to single-mother welfare queens than to disabled veterans.
22 people like this.
Reply 12 - Posted by:
preciosodrogas 8/24/2025 8:44:48 AM (No. 1994700)
Lord, thank you. As #1 put it - best headline ever, it truly warms my heart. Thank you all for your support of veterans. The amount doesn't matter, a simple smile and a nod of acknowledgment, a posted opinion is enough. I am a disabled veteran. There have been moments when the care has been terrific and there have been years when it has not been so nearly as good. Unfortunately, I'm stuck with them and I need the care they promised us. I am not a special case, lots of guys are in the same situation. So thank you for your support of the veterans.
18 people like this.
Reply 13 - Posted by:
janjan 8/24/2025 9:09:59 AM (No. 1994710)
My neighbor works in the HR Dept for the VA. He told me that he spends 2-3 hours per candidate filling out multiple forms for multiple departments all asking the same questions. Diverting $45 million to where it’s supposed to go is certainly headline grabbing but how much more could they save by cutting red tape and managing the VA effectively? Would that take too much work and not get enough press coverage?
7 people like this.
Reply 14 - Posted by:
Cheri Beri 8/24/2025 9:26:40 AM (No. 1994715)
I have worked in healthcare for 27 years - 11 years at a large medical center In the private sector and the last 16 years at a VA hospital. Our hospital is rated in the top 5 of all VA hospitals in the country. The problem is inconsistency. You can go to to one VA.and receive excellent care like mine and go to another and have a completely different experience. Secretary Collins has spoken about this and currently the entire VA system of operation is going under.major changes to right the ship. Employees that are resistant to this have taken the voluntary retirement or resignation offered or being drummed out. The DEI nonsense has been stopped along with other wasteful spending. It will take some time but it is happening! P.S. I'm a Vet too and get my care through the VA
9 people like this.
Reply 15 - Posted by:
MickTurn 8/24/2025 11:20:28 AM (No. 1994767)
It's about Effin Kerry TIME!
4 people like this.
Reply 16 - Posted by:
Foghorn 8/24/2025 11:40:07 AM (No. 1994782)
It's about time the VA employees are forced to go to work now. Unions in government do not work as they keep believing they need more money for the job they are doing. They only reason they came to work rather than work from home is because you can't always provide medical care over a phone.
1 person likes this.
Reply 17 - Posted by:
Vaquero45 8/24/2025 12:14:27 PM (No. 1994796)
Every time I hear a tale about the VA, I thank my lucky stars that I was never wounded in action. I’m registered with the VA - got a little white ID in my wallet - and if I ever come down with any one of about eight different disorders or cancers, they’ll blame it on Agent Orange or the water at Camp Lejeune. The trouble is, it won’t do much good. I worked all my life and have a decent retirement income and Medical insurance, so I’m not eligible for a lot of their assistance. There’s a case to be made that the VA may have outlived its usefulness.
1 person likes this.
Reply 18 - Posted by:
paral04 8/24/2025 2:14:24 PM (No. 1994828)
The government employees should not be unionized in the first place. All it does is make the employees lazy and rude. They have their rules on getting promotions and had all kinds if benefits before unionizing.. And it is we the people, who they are striking against if they decide to do that.
2 people like this.
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Imagine some good may yet come for Veterans should any of those 369,000 former union goons actually begin providing health care services for American patriots.