On Wednesday, a US appellate court ruled to allow 18 federal agencies to continue laying off thousands of federal employees. The Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond, Virginia, ruled that lower court judges may not have the authority to reinstate probationary government employees who have been laid off.
In a 2-1 decision, the appellate court granted a stay of a federal judge’s ruling in Baltimore, which required the Trump administration to reinstate laid-off employees who lived or worked in Washington, D.C., and 19 states during the appeal process.
On Tuesday, the US Supreme Court granted a stay of another ruling by San Francisco judge William Alsup, which required six agencies to reinstate nearly 17,000 probationary employees.
The Supreme Court stated that the nonprofit organizations covered by Judge Alsup’s ruling lacked standing to sue the government.
Earlier, in mid-February, federal agencies laid off approximately 25,000 probationary employees, deemed non-essential by the US Office of Personnel Management.
The layoffs were part of the Trump administration’s extensive efforts, with the assistance of Elon Musk, to significantly reduce the federal bureaucracy and cut government spending.
States argued in lawsuits that the mass layoffs violated federal laws requiring agencies to provide advance notice of significant layoffs, leading to a surge in unemployment claims and social service needs.
Unions, nonprofits, and the state of Washington filed lawsuits in San Francisco, accusing the White House Office of Personnel Management of unauthorized directives to federal agencies to lay off probationary employees.
(Source: Reuters)