Washington, DC [US], March 14 : A federal judge has directed six federal agencies to "immediately" reinstate probationary employees who were sacked in February as part of the Trump administration's effort to reduce the federal workforce, CNN reported. The judge called the move a "sham."
In a preliminary injunction issued from the bench on Thursday, US District Judge William Alsup directed the departments of Veterans Affairs, Energy, Interior, Agriculture, Defence and Treasury to rehire the affected employees. The judge said that he might extend the order to other federal agencies at a later time.
Alsup, appointed by former US President Bill Clinton, said that he has issued the ruling as he believes the Office of Personnel Management unlawfully ordered the agencies earlier this year to lay off the probationary employees, who generally have been on the job for less than a year, CNN reported.
He said, "The court finds that Office of Personnel Management did direct all agencies to terminate probationary employees with the exception of mission critical employees," rejecting arguments from the Justice Department that OPM merely issued "guidance" to the agencies that then led to the firings.
The judge said the order is effective immediately. He said, "This is the order, and it counts." The judge's ruling came in a case filed by labour unions and others challenging OPM's role in the firings, which impacted thousands of employees and sent shockwaves to various federal agencies.
Alsup was highly critical of the administration's justification for firing the employees. OPM had provided agencies with a template termination letter that mentioned the employee's "performance" as the reason they were being let go. However, the judge stressed that the rationale was the government's attempt to end federal law creating specific rules for shrinking the federal workforce.
The judge said, "The reason that OPM wanted to put this based on performance was at least in part in my judgment a gimmick to avoid the Reductions in Force Act." He said, "Because the law always allows you to fire somebody for performance."
He called it a "sad day" when the government would sack some good employees and say it was done on the basis of performance "when they know good and well that's a lie." He added, "That should not have been done in our country. It was a sham in order to try to avoid statutory requirements."
Federal probationary employees typically serve in their positions for one year. However, some jobs have a two-year probationary period, as reported by CNN. The employees may be new to the federal workforce. However, they could have been promoted or shifted to a different agency.
Alsup's ruling comes at a time when the Trump administration has been making efforts to reduce the number of federal employees, a key priority that has been central to the Elon Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency. The Trump administration has been targeting probationary workers as they have fewer job protections and can be dismissed more easily.
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