Federal Judge Halts Trump Administration's Mass Layoffs of Government Workers
A California court ruled that the U.S. Office of Personnel Management lacked the authority to direct mass terminations of federal employees, citing probable legal violations.
- U.S. District Judge William Alsup issued a temporary injunction against mass layoffs of federal employees in probationary periods, deeming them likely unlawful.
- The ruling challenges directives from the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), which allegedly instructed federal agencies to terminate thousands of employees without proper authority.
- Approximately 200,000 federal workers in probationary periods were targeted, with tens of thousands already dismissed under the contested policy.
- The court emphasized that hiring and termination powers are delegated to individual federal agencies by Congress, not centralized under OPM.
- The Trump administration, with input from advisor Elon Musk, has faced over 40 lawsuits challenging its efforts to drastically reduce the federal workforce, with expectations these cases may escalate to the Supreme Court.
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