A US federal judge on Thursday issued a temporarily block order on the Donald Trump administration’s order directing federal agencies to carry out mass firings of recently hired employees, reported Reuters.
San Francisco district judge William Alsup stated that the US Office of Personnel Management did not have the power to order federal agencies to fire any workers, including probationary employees who usually have less than one year of experience.
The court’s order comes after US President Donald Trump and billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk, who is co-chairing the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), announced laying off employees to cut costs in the administration.
Judge Alsup ordered the official of personnel management to revoke a memo issued on January 20 and an email from February 14, both of which had ordered federal agencies to identify probationary employees who were not “mission-critical” and fire them.
“Probationary employees are the lifeblood of our government. They come in at a low level and work their way up. That’s how we renew ourselves,” Judge Alsup said.
The department of the defense on Friday plans to fire 5,400 probationary employees, as it does not fall into the purview of the lawsuit by the employee unions. The judge, however, directed the government to inform the department of defense that their email and memo had been deemed invalid.
President of the American Federation of Government Employees, Everett Kelley one of the unions which are the plaintiff in the case, said about the mass firings that, “These are rank-and-file workers who joined the federal government to make a difference in their communities, only to be suddenly terminated due to this administration’s disdain for federal employees and desire to privatize their work.”
The US Justice Department, on behalf of the Trump administration argued in court that the memo and email only asked agencies to review their probationary employees and decide who could potentially be terminated. They stated that it was simply a request and not an order to terminate employees.
Another White House memo issued on Wednesday instructed agencies to submit plans by March 13 for a “significant reduction” in staffing.
