By Jesse Russell

Ten unions filed a lawsuit Monday against the Defense Department over a proposed merit pay system. The American Federation of Government Employees filed the suit along with nine other federal employee unions alleging that the new system would lessen the collective bargaining rights of employees. Part of the plan gives more flexibility to management to assign work and would reward employees based on merit and not seniority. A similar plan introduced at the Department of Homeland Security was blocked by a federal court judge in August. The judge agreed with the unions who brought the suit saying the plan would erode bargaining rights and allow the agency to eliminate portions of contracts without little input from workers.