By Kolawole Ojebisi
The decision of the Trump administration to sack thousands of probationary federal workers across multiple agencies has been overruled by the court of law.
This is as two federal judges ordered United States President, Donald Trump’s administration to temporarily reinstate the army of probationary federal workers fired by the US government.
Highlighting the reason for the rulings on Thursday, the court noted that the terminations were carried out in violation of legal procedures.
In San Francisco, US District Judge William Alsup ruled that the acting director of the Office of Personnel Management, Charles Ezell, did not have the authority to direct the mass layoffs.
Meanwhile, US District Judge James Bredar in Baltimore found that the administration failed to follow laws requiring a 60-day notice for large-scale layoffs.
Bredar’s ruling temporarily halted the firings and ordered the reinstatement of workers to their previous positions.
The Trump administration has already appealed Alsup’s ruling. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt criticised the court orders, calling them an unconstitutional challenge to the president’s authority to manage federal employment.
“The Trump Administration will immediately fight back against this absurd and unconstitutional order,” she said in a statement.
The legal action comes after a coalition of labor unions and nonprofit organizations filed lawsuits alleging the firings were unlawful and disrupted government operations, especially in areas like veterans’ care and public land management.
These groups argue that the firings were part of a broader effort to reduce the federal workforce without proper oversight.
Alsup’s order specifically targeted employees in six agencies, including Veterans Affairs, Agriculture, Defense, Energy, the Interior, and Treasury, instructing them to offer job reinstatement to workers who were let go around mid-February.
The judge expressed frustration with the government’s attempt to bypass regulations governing workforce reductions by firing probationary employees, who lack the full protections of civil service workers.
Probationary workers, who are typically newer to their jobs, have been a primary focus of the mass firings.
They are often more vulnerable because they lack the ability to appeal terminations.
“These mass-firings of federal workers were not just and attack on government agencies and their ability to function, they were also a direct assault on public lands, wildlife, and the rule of law,” said Erik Molvar, executive director of Western Watersheds Project, one of the plaintiffs.
According to the lawsuit, at least 24,000 probationary employees have been let go since Trump took office, though the government has not confirmed this number.
The plaintiffs contend that the layoffs have affected state governments, as they now face the challenge of supporting a sudden influx of jobless individuals.
The Trump administration maintains that the firings were justified, arguing that they were based on individual performance evaluations, not large-scale layoffs subject to specific regulations.
However, Alsup questioned the validity of this reasoning, noting that some employees had received positive evaluations just months before their termination.
“It is sad, 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,” he said. “That should not have been done in our country.”
“I know how we get at the truth, and you’re not helping me get at the truth,” Alsup said to Kelsey Helland, an assistant US attorney.
The rulings have been met with mixed reactions. Labour unions, which represent many of the affected workers, have praised the decisions, calling them a victory for federal employees and the rule of law.
On the other hand, the Trump administration remains committed to appealing the decisions, framing them as an overreach by the judiciary into executive powers.
The temporary reinstatement of the fired employees is expected to impact approximately 200,000 probationary workers across federal agencies, including about 15,000 in California alone.
These employees, who perform a variety of duties from fire prevention to veterans’ care, are now temporarily protected from dismissal until further court proceedings.
