In a setback for Donald Trump's administration, a federal judge ordered the US government to reverse its decision on mass firings that is a part of the Republican President's plan to cut the government's workforce, according to some media reports. In its ruling, the Court directed the Office of Personnel Management to withdraw directives sent to several federal agencies that resulted in thousands of staff being laid off.
According to a report from the Washington Post, US District Judge William Alsup said, "The Office of Personnel Management does not have any authority whatsoever under any statute in the history of the universe to hire and fire employees at another agency."
Additionally, a federal judge in San Francisco on Thursday found that the mass firings of probationary employees were likely unlawful, granting temporary relief to a coalition of labor unions and organizations that has sued to stop the Trump administration's massive dismantling of the federal workforce.
US District Judge William Alsup ordered the Office of Personnel Management to inform certain federal agencies that it had no authority to order the firings of probationary employees, including those at the Department of Defense.
“OPM does not have any authority whatsoever, under any statute in the history of the universe,” to hire or fire any employees but its own, Alsup said.
The complaint filed by five labour unions and five nonprofit organizations is among multiple lawsuits pushing back on the administration's efforts to shrink a workforce that Trump has called bloated and sloppy.
Thousands of probationary employees have already been fired, and his administration is now aiming at career officials with civil service protection. Lawyers for the government agree that the office has no authority to hire or fire employees in other agencies.
But they said the Office of Personnel Management asked agencies to review and determine whether employees on probation were fit for continued employment. They also said that probationary employees are not guaranteed employment and that only the highest performing and mission-critical employees should be hired.
(With inputs from AP)