ADVERTISEMENTs
US judge orders Trump administration to reinstate thousands of fired workers
The judge ruled that said on March 13 that OPM has no power to order firings, and there was evidence that it had improperly directed the termination of workers.
San Francisco residents photograph a group of protesters during a demonstration as part of a nationwide series of protests against the mass firings of employees in a campaign by President Donald Trump and his adviser Elon Musk to radically cut back the U.S. bureaucracy, at Fort Mason Park in San Francisco, California, U.S. March 1, 2025. / REUTERS/Yuri Avila/File Photo
A California federal judge on March 13 ordered six U.S. agencies to reinstate thousands of recently-hired employees who were fired as part of President Donald Trump's purge of the federal workforce.
The ruling made by U.S. District Judge William Alsup during a hearing in San Francisco applies to the U.S. Department of Defense, Department of Veterans Affairs, Department of Agriculture, Department of Energy, Department of Interior and the Treasury Department.
Alsup last month temporarily blocked the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, the human resources department for federal agencies, from ordering agencies to fire probationary employees, but declined at the time to require that fired workers get their jobs back.
Also Read: US judge halts Trump administration's calls for mass firings at agencies
Probationary workers typically have less than one year of service in their current roles, though some are longtime federal employees. They have fewer job protections than other government workers, but in general can only be fired for performance issues.
Alsup said on March 13 that OPM has no power to order firings, and there was evidence that it had improperly directed the termination of workers at the six agencies. He did not order the 16 other agencies named in the lawsuit by unions and nonprofit groups to reinstate workers.
“It is a sad day when our government would fire some good employee and say it was based on performance when they know good and well that’s a lie,” Alsup said.
The potential scale of Trump's efforts to shrink the U.S. federal government could become clearer on March 13, the deadline for government agencies to submit plans for a second wave of mass layoffs and to slash their budgets.
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
E Paper
ADVERTISEMENT
.jpg)
Video
.jpeg)
.jpeg)
.png)
Comments
Start the conversation
Become a member of New India Abroad to start commenting.
Sign Up Now
Already have an account? Login