US Judge Blocks Mass Firing of Federal Workers Under Trump’s Plan

By A Staff Reporter

Los Angeles, United States: A federal judge on Thursday ordered the US government to reverse mass firings initiated under former President Donald Trump and billionaire Elon Musk’s proposed plan to downsize the federal workforce.

The ruling, issued by US District Judge William Alsup in San Francisco, directed the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to retract directives that led to thousands of federal employees losing their jobs.

"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," Judge Alsup stated, as reported by The Washington Post. He clarified that the power to hire and fire rests solely with individual agencies such as the Department of Defense.

The decision marks another significant legal setback for Trump’s efforts to reshape the federal government. It follows a series of recent court rulings that blocked his attempts to ban refugee admissions and overturn birthright citizenship.

The lawsuit, brought by unions and advocacy groups, challenged what they described as illegal directives to terminate probationary federal workers—employees in their first or second year of service, including those promoted from lower ranks. The controversial order reportedly impacted tens of thousands of employees.

Plaintiffs argued that OPM overstepped its authority by unilaterally instructing federal agencies to fire employees. "OPM, the federal agency charged with implementing this nation's employment laws, in one fell swoop has perpetrated one of the most massive employment frauds in the history of this country," their legal filing stated.