Federal judge blocks mass layoffs of probationary employees ordered by Trump administration

U.S. District Judge William Alsup ordered the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to revoke directives from President Donald Trump regarding mass layoffs of probationary workers in the U.S. government, ruling that the move was likely illegal. Alsup also ordered OPM to rescind directives that had previously been sent to several agencies, including the National Science Foundation, the Bureau of Land Management, the National Park Service, the Department of Defense and many others named in the lawsuit filed by a group of unions and advocacy organizations led by the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE).

While issuing the ruling in federal court in San Francisco, Alsup detailed, "Congress has given the authority to hire and fire to the agencies themselves. The Department of Defense, for example, has statutory authority to hire and fire. The Office of Personnel Management does not have any authority whatsoever, under any statute in the history of the universe, to hire and fire employees at another agency. They can hire and fire their own employees." Alsup added that the ruling imposes a temporary restraint and will be reviewed in the coming weeks.

Plaintiffs' argument

The plaintiffs argued in legal documents that OPM committed an illegal act by ordering government agencies a couple of weeks ago to fire all probationary workers, defined as those in their first or second year on the job. The plaintiffs added that, in certain cases, certain employees with many years of experience who were starting new positions were classified as probationary workers.

"This ruling by Judge Alsup is an important initial victory for patriotic Americans across this country who were illegally fired from their jobs by an agency that had no authority to do so. 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," commented AFGE President Everett Kelley.