Federal Judge Halts Trump Administration Layoffs During Government Shutdown
A federal judge in California has reportedly blocked the White House administration’s plan to implement mass layoffs of government workers during the ongoing partial government shutdown, according to court documents and Reuters reporting. U.S. District Judge Susan Illston issued the temporary restraining order on Wednesday while she considers legal challenges from federal worker unions.
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Legal Challenge to Layoff Authority
The ruling came in response to lawsuits filed by two major unions representing federal government employees who argued that the administration of President Donald Trump lacked legal authority to implement mass layoffs during the funding lapse. According to reports, Judge Illston expressed serious concerns about the legality of the administration’s actions during the hearing.
“You can’t do that in a nation of laws. And we have laws here, and the things that are being articulated here are not within the law,” Illston stated during the proceedings, according to court transcripts. The judge, an appointee of former President Bill Clinton, specifically cited public statements by Trump and White House Budget Director Russell Vought that she suggested showed political motivations behind the layoffs.
Scale of Proposed Workforce Reductions
Sources indicate that approximately 4,100 workers across eight federal agencies had already received layoff notifications prior to the judge’s ruling. However, during a recent media appearance, White House Budget Director Russell Vought suggested that more than 10,000 federal workers could ultimately lose their jobs because of the shutdown, according to the report.
The administration had reportedly begun implementing what analysts described as substantial workforce reductions across the U.S. government as the partial shutdown entered its 15th day. President Trump had also extended an existing hiring freeze for federal workers, with exceptions for military personnel and political appointees.
Judge Demands Immediate Accountability
Judge Illston ordered the administration to provide by Friday a detailed accounting of any “actual or imminent” layoffs and to outline steps agencies are taking to comply with her ruling. The report states that during the hearing, a U.S. Department of Justice lawyer representing the administration declined to address the judge’s concerns about the legality of the layoffs, instead arguing that the unions must first bring their claims to a federal labor board.
Illston reportedly criticized this position, noting that “The hatchet is falling on the heads of employees all across the nation, and you’re not even prepared to address whether that’s legal.”
Union Response and Legal Arguments
The American Federation of Government Employees and American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees claimed in their lawsuit that implementing layoffs does not qualify as an essential service that can be performed during a lapse in government funding. Legal analysts suggest the unions argued that the shutdown doesn’t justify mass job cuts since most federal workers have already been furloughed without pay.
Skye Perryman, president and CEO of Democracy Forward, which represents the unions, stated that “Our civil servants do the work of the people, and playing games with their livelihoods is cruel and unlawful and a threat to everyone in our nation.”
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Political Context and Broader Implications
The ruling comes amid an ongoing political standoff over government funding, with Democrats holding out for an extension of health-insurance subsidies. Sources indicate that Trump’s Republicans hold majorities in both chambers of Congress but need Democratic votes to pass a funding bill in the Senate.
According to the reporting, the judge’s decision is likely to be appealed quickly, but it provides temporary relief for federal workers facing what analysts describe as a nearly year-long push by the Trump administration to reduce the federal workforce. The case continues to develop as the administration prepares its response to the judge’s order for detailed layoff information.
This coverage is based on reporting from Reuters content services and does not constitute original investigation.
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