Today is Labor Day, a national holiday dedicated to celebrating the American worker. But in 2025, what it means to be a worker in America is being rapidly and radically redefined.
In the first 224 days of his second term, President Donald Trump has unleashed a torrent of policy changes that have created two very different, and often competing, realities. For some, it’s an era of unprecedented opportunity and direct financial relief. For others, it’s a time of lost protections and growing uncertainty.
So, what has actually changed for the American worker under the new administration?
At a Glance: A Tale of Two Workers
- The Big Picture: The first 224 days of the second Trump term have seen a deliberate and rapid reversal of previous labor and economic policies.
- Key Pro-Worker Wins: The elimination of federal taxes on tips and overtime, strong blue-collar wage growth, and a booming energy sector.
- Key Negative Impacts: Weakened union protections, reduced workplace safety oversight, a pay cut for many federal contractors, and the loss of work authorization for thousands of immigrant workers.
- The Constitutional Issue: A fundamental debate over how to “promote the general Welfare” – through deregulation and broad economic growth, or through direct government intervention and targeted worker protections.
The Taxpayer and the Paycheck
The administration’s most significant and tangible victories for workers have come through its landmark tax and spending legislation.
The most celebrated provision is the complete elimination of federal income taxes on tipped and overtime wages. For millions of working-class Americans in the service, hospitality, and trade industries, this is a direct and substantial increase in their take-home pay.
The White House also points to strong top-line economic data as proof its agenda is working. The economy has added a net of 671,000 jobs since January, and blue-collar wage growth has reportedly seen its largest increase in nearly 60 years. Administration data also shows that native-born workers have accounted for all of the net job gains in this period.
The Energy and Business Sector
A core tenet of the administration’s philosophy is that what is good for business is ultimately good for the worker. This has been most evident in two areas.
First, the administration has overseen the fastest rate of new oil and gas drilling permits in years. This policy has a direct and immediate positive employment impact on blue-collar workers in the energy sector and related manufacturing industries, particularly in states like Texas, Pennsylvania, and North Dakota.
Second, a broad deregulation campaign across multiple federal agencies has saved businesses hundreds of billions of dollars. The administration argues this frees up capital for companies to hire more workers, raise wages, and invest in expansion, creating a rising tide that lifts all boats.
The Union Hall and the Contractor
While one set of workers has seen direct benefits, another has seen a direct and deliberate rollback of government protections.
Organized Labor has faced a two-pronged assault. The administration has reinstated “Schedule F,” a controversial policy that reclassifies tens of thousands of federal employees, stripping them of their civil service and union protections and making them easier to fire.
This, combined with new appointments to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), has demonstrably weakened the power of public-sector unions.
Federal Contractors also took a direct hit. An executive order from the previous administration that had raised the minimum wage for employees of companies that do business with the government was rescinded.
For hundreds of thousands of low-wage janitorial, food service, and administrative workers, this was an immediate pay cut.
The administration’s record reveals two competing but consistent visions of what it means to be ‘pro-worker.’ One vision prioritizes broad economic growth… The other prioritizes the targeted protection of workers through government regulation and collective bargaining.
Finally, the administration has continued to revoke Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for individuals from countries like Venezuela and Haiti, resulting in the loss of legal work authorization for hundreds of thousands of people who had been legally employed in the U.S. for years.
Two Visions of ‘Pro-Worker’
The record of the first 224 days reveals not a series of chaotic or contradictory policies, but a coherent and deeply divisive governing philosophy.
It is a deliberate shift away from a model of targeted government intervention, union protection, and workplace regulation.
It has been replaced by a deregulatory, tax-cutting model that aims to benefit workers primarily by unleashing broad economic growth.
Both critics and supporters can point to real, factual data to make their case. This Labor Day, it’s clear that the American workforce is living through a great reversal. The ultimate verdict on which approach is truly better for the American worker will be the central question of our time.