Judge rejects union's request to restrict DOGE's access to Labor Department data
District Judge John Bates ruled that the groups did not have the required standing to obtain a temporary restraining order.
TroibNews 
On Friday night, a federal judge dismissed labor unions' efforts to prevent Elon Musk's government efficiency team from accessing sensitive data at the Labor Department.
District Judge John Bates, appointed by former President George W. Bush, ruled that the unions did not adequately demonstrate the standing required to obtain the temporary restraining order they sought against the Department of Government Efficiency. He acknowledged their concerns regarding potential privacy risks associated with Musk's initiative.
“This data includes the medical and financial records of millions of Americans,” Bates wrote in a nine-page order. “But on the current record, plaintiffs have failed to establish standing.”
This decision represents a setback for the unions, who had intended to broaden their legal action to include more agencies beyond the Department of Labor (DOL) that are under the scrutiny of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), such as the Department of Health and Human Services, the Education Department, and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
Bates’ ruling came shortly after a lengthy hearing where he posed challenging questions to the lawyers representing both the unions, who initiated the lawsuit on Wednesday, and the Trump administration.
The government contended that the unions’ lawsuit was overly speculative and dependent on the claims of a single anonymous agency employee.
While the government had agreed to restrict DOGE’s interactions with the DOL pending Friday’s hearing, Bates’ ruling now allows DOGE to commence its examination of multiple Labor Department systems, including those related to workers' compensation claims, workplace safety investigations, and critical indicators of the U.S. economy.
Jessica Kline contributed to this report for TROIB News
District Judge John Bates, appointed by former President George W. Bush, ruled that the unions did not adequately demonstrate the standing required to obtain the temporary restraining order they sought against the Department of Government Efficiency. He acknowledged their concerns regarding potential privacy risks associated with Musk's initiative.
“This data includes the medical and financial records of millions of Americans,” Bates wrote in a nine-page order. “But on the current record, plaintiffs have failed to establish standing.”
This decision represents a setback for the unions, who had intended to broaden their legal action to include more agencies beyond the Department of Labor (DOL) that are under the scrutiny of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), such as the Department of Health and Human Services, the Education Department, and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
Bates’ ruling came shortly after a lengthy hearing where he posed challenging questions to the lawyers representing both the unions, who initiated the lawsuit on Wednesday, and the Trump administration.
The government contended that the unions’ lawsuit was overly speculative and dependent on the claims of a single anonymous agency employee.
While the government had agreed to restrict DOGE’s interactions with the DOL pending Friday’s hearing, Bates’ ruling now allows DOGE to commence its examination of multiple Labor Department systems, including those related to workers' compensation claims, workplace safety investigations, and critical indicators of the U.S. economy.
Jessica Kline contributed to this report for TROIB News
