A federal judge has denied a motion by labor unions to block Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) from accessing systems within the Department of Labor, marking a legal victory for the Trump administration’s government reform efforts.
The lawsuit, filed by the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) along with four affiliated unions and the Economic Policy Institute, sought to prevent Musk’s team from reviewing Labor Department data.
The unions claimed that allowing DOGE access would violate the Privacy Act of 1974 and potentially compromise workers’ private information.
AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler strongly criticized the move, arguing that Musk had no legal authority to obtain such data. “Elon Musk has absolutely no business raiding the Department of Labor to obtain the sensitive personal information of workers,” Shuler said. “It’s outrageous that Musk thinks he has the authority to access private data on workers from an agency that’s entrusted with protecting the fundamental rights of working people.”
Despite these concerns, U.S. District Judge John Bates, an appointee of former President George W. Bush, ruled that the plaintiffs failed to establish legal standing, a necessary requirement for the case to proceed.
Bates found that the unions did not provide sufficient evidence proving their members faced immediate harm from DOGE’s access to Labor Department data.
The court acknowledged the general concerns raised about privacy but emphasized that specific, individualized harm must be demonstrated for a legal challenge to move forward. “The record here is simply insufficient at this point,” Bates stated in his ruling. “In sum, plaintiffs fail to establish that any one of them has standing under either route an organization can take. That means they are not entitled to preliminary relief at this juncture.”
The ruling is a significant setback for opponents of DOGE’s initiatives, which have been central to Trump’s broader effort to streamline government operations and eliminate inefficiencies. The administration has defended Musk’s role, arguing that his expertise in technology and business optimization makes him well-suited to identifying government waste.
Following the decision, many conservative commentators on social media praised the judge’s ruling as a victory for government accountability.
Supporters of the Trump administration argue that DOGE’s review of federal agencies is necessary to ensure taxpayer dollars are spent efficiently and effectively.
With this ruling, DOGE is expected to continue its audits and investigations into various federal departments, reinforcing Trump’s push to reshape the government’s structure and spending practices.
The lawsuit’s failure to proceed marks another milestone in the administration’s broader efforts to reduce bureaucracy and increase oversight.