The United States Supreme Court on Tuesday stayed a California judge’s order mandating the Trump administration to reinstate thousands of federal employees who were terminated as part of a large-scale effort to downsize the federal government.
According to the Associated Press (AP), the apex court intervened in response to an emergency appeal filed by the administration after U.S. District Judge William Alsup had ruled that 16,000 probationary employees must be reinstated, as their terminations allegedly violated federal law.
As a result of the US Supreme Court’s order, employees from six federal agencies will remain on paid administrative leave for the time being. Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Ketanji Brown Jackson dissented, saying they would have upheld Judge Alsup’s ruling, as per AP’s report.
This marks the third instance within a week where the US Supreme Court has sided with President Donald Trump’s administration against federal judges’ rulings that have impeded elements of his policy agenda. The court recently paused an order related to teacher training grants and lifted another that had halted deportations under a centuries-old wartime statute.
However, the scope of the latest order may be limited. A separate case in Maryland resulted in another order that also blocked the terminations—affecting not just the six agencies named in Alsup’s ruling, but approximately a dozen more. That order, however, applies only to the 19 states and the District of Columbia which are parties to the suit. The Justice Department has separately appealed that Maryland ruling.
The lawsuits claim that over 24,000 probationary employees have been dismissed since President Trump assumed office, although the government has not officially verified that figure.
California Judge Criticised Dismissals Of Probationary Workers
Judge Alsup, appointed by former Democratic President Bill Clinton, had determined that the Office of Personnel Management and its acting director improperly directed the dismissals. His order required reinstatement of workers from the Departments of Veterans Affairs, Agriculture, Defence, Energy, the Interior, and the Treasury.
The lawsuit leading to Alsup’s order was filed by a coalition of labour unions and non-profit organisations who argued that reduced manpower would adversely impact their operations.
Judge Alsup criticised the administration’s actions, accusing it of attempting to circumvent established laws and regulations by targeting probationary workers who have fewer legal protections. He said he was appalled that employees were told they were being fired for poor performance despite receiving glowing evaluations just months earlier, AP reported.
Solicitor General D. John Sauer, representing the administration, told the court that the agencies “have since decided to stand by those terminations,” maintaining that the firings were carried out by the departments themselves, as per the report.
