The Hidden Cost of Union Official Time: Why Taxpayers Should Stop Funding No-Show Jobs

Or, Attention DOGE: Official Time = Government Waste and Inefficiency, Full Stop 

Imagine a job where you’re paid a full government salary — complete with healthcare, a pension, vacation days, raises, and bonuses — not to serve the public, but to work for a private organization. Now imagine taxpayers footing the bill for someone else to step in and do your actual government work while you’re away. This isn’t a hypothetical scandal; it’s the reality of union Official Time, a little-known federal practice that cost nearly $135 million in 2019 alone. It’s time to ask: why are we paying for what amounts to no-show jobs? 

The Taxpayers’ Burden: A Price Tag in the Millions 

Union Official Time allows federal employees to clock in for union duties — negotiating contracts, resolving disputes, or meeting with management — while still drawing a government paycheck. In 2019, the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) reported 2.6 million hours of this activity, costing taxpayers $135 million. That’s down from $177 million in 2016, but still a staggering sum for work that doesn’t directly serve the public. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg. These employees aren’t just collecting salaries; they’re accruing benefits — healthcare, pensions, even vacation time — while on the union clock.  

Take the example from a 2016 OPM report: a Veterans Affairs nurse who stopped providing medical care to veterans, instead spending 100% of her time on union tasks. Who picks up the slack? In many cases, agencies may hire temporary workers to fill these gaps, adding yet another layer of expense. While recent data on temp hiring is scarce, the logic is inescapable: if someone’s not doing their job, someone else has to. Taxpayers are left double-paying — paying the union official and the stand-in. 

Subsidizing a Private Powerhouse 

Here’s the kicker: unions aren’t government entities. They’re private organizations with their own agendas, often flexing political muscle through lobbying and campaign contributions. Yet, through Official Time, taxpayers are effectively bankrolling their operations. Critics call it a subsidy for special interests, and they’ve got a point. The 2018 Janus v. AFSCME Supreme Court ruling drove this home, declaring that all public-sector union activity is inherently political. If unions shape labor policies that influence government budgets and elections, how can we pretend Official Time isn’t a backdoor to political funding? 

The law says Official Time can’t be used for overt politicking — like campaigning — but the line blurs when union officials spend their days on activities that bolster an organization’s broader political influence. In 2024, House Republicans spotlighted this tension, questioning why federal employees should be paid to strengthen unions at all. It’s a fair question: why should a taxpayer in Texas or Ohio fund a union’s power play in Washington? 

The No-Show Job Reality 

Let’s call it what it is: union Official Time creates no-show jobs. Employees step away from their desks, their labs, their service counters, and taxpayers don’t see the benefit. In 1995, the Government Accountability Office found the Postal Service alone logged 1.7 million hours of Official Time.  In addition, the Social Security Administration reported costs of $11.4 million for 404,000 hours, compared to USPS’s $29.2 million estimate for 1.7 million hours. Fast forward to 2019, and the hours hit at least 2.6 million hours across the government. That’s millions of hours where public servants aren’t serving the public. 

And the cost isn’t just financial — it’s operational. Agencies lose continuity when key staff are diverted, and the public loses trust when they hear their tax dollars are padding union coffers. The upcoming FY 2024 OPM report, due after a five-year data gap, might shed new light, but the trend is clear: this is a system ripe for reform. 

A Legal and Ethical Quagmire 

Defenders argue Official Time is legal, rooted in the 1978 Civil Service Reform Act, and limited to “representational” duties. But the Janus ruling throws a wrench in that defense. If all government union activity is political, as the Court suggested, then paying for it with public funds skirts dangerously close to illegality — or at least impropriety. Federal rules ban political activity on Official Time, yet the broader context of union power makes that restriction feel like a technicality. Without transparency — OPM hasn’t published detailed reports since 2019 — we’re left guessing how much of this time crosses the line. 

The Case for Ending It, or, No Legitimate Case to Keep It 

Ending union Official Time isn’t about dismantling unions; it’s about fairness. Unions can fund their own staff, as private entities should. Taxpayers shouldn’t be on the hook for salaries, benefits, and temp workers to prop up a system that’s outlived its purpose. The savings — hundreds of millions per year — could bolster public services instead. Imagine redirecting $135 million to veterans’ care, infrastructure, or tax relief. Even union supporters might struggle to argue against that math. 

The counterargument, per a Brookings analysis, is that Official Time fosters labor-management harmony. But at what cost? When harmony means taxpayers pay twice — once for the union rep and once for the replacement — it’s a luxury we can’t afford. The data speaks for itself: 2.6 million hours in 2019, $177 million in 2016, and a legacy of waste stretching back decades.  

A Call to Action 

As the Trump Administration ramps up scrutiny in 2025, per Federal News Network, the moment is ripe for change. Congress should seize it, scrapping Official Time and forcing unions to stand on their own. It’s not anti-labor — it’s pro-taxpayer. The no-show job era needs to end, not because unions don’t matter, but because taxpayers shouldn’t pay for them to matter more. Let’s close this chapter and put public funds back where they belong: in the public’s hands.  

And use DOGE’s federal taxpayer money created power to end federal contracts that support state or local governments that have Official Time.  If states or localities have Official Time, then no federal government grants. This will save billions more in federal tax dollars, and it may help rescue state and local taxpayers realize the swindle they have been forced to support.  

And, obviously, a government without Official Time would be more efficient than the same one with Official Time bloat added.  

Key Data Snapshot  

• 2019: 2.6M hours, $135M of reported cost (OPM)  

• 2016: 3.6M hours, $177M of reported cost (OPM)  

• 1995: 1.7M of reported hours (Postal Service alone, GAO)  

• Janus v. AFSCME (2018): Government union activity considered political  

Note: Current proposed legislation aims to recover funds allocated for official time expenditures and another bill attempts to get annual reports on the wasted money (The House has companion bills, and in 2024 some House members proposed simply eliminating Official Time types of payments). A more efficient approach would be to eliminate this practice entirely, remove redundant and unnecessary staff positions, and pursue legal action against employees who received payment for official time duties without performing approved tasks.