SAN FRANCISCO, CA – A federal judge has ordered six U.S. government agencies to reinstate thousands of employees who were dismissed as part of a sweeping effort by President Donald Trump to reshape the federal workforce.
U.S. District Judge William Alsup, ruling from San Francisco on Thursday, found that the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) had overstepped its authority by directing the terminations, impacting employees at the Departments of Defense, Veterans Affairs, Agriculture, Energy, Interior, and Treasury.
This decision marks a major setback for Trump-era policies aimed at reducing government staff.
The judge’s ruling follows his earlier move to temporarily block OPM from ordering terminations, though at the time he stopped short of requiring agencies to rehire those who had already been dismissed.
“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 during the hearing.
The fired workers were mostly probationary employees—generally those with less than a year in their current roles—who have fewer job protections than permanent government employees.
While these workers can typically be let go for performance issues, Alsup found evidence that OPM had improperly ordered their dismissals.
However, the ruling does not apply to the 16 other federal agencies named in the lawsuit filed by unions and nonprofit organizations.
The broader implications of Trump’s federal workforce policies could become clearer soon.
Government agencies face a Thursday deadline to submit plans for a second wave of mass layoffs and budget reductions, which could further reshape the federal workforce.
