US judge blocks Trump layoffs, orders reinstatement of federal workers

A U.S. federal judge has issued a preliminary injunction ordering the Trump administration to stop ongoing layoffs and reinstate thousands of federal employees who were dismissed during the recent 43-day government shutdown. Judge Susan Illston of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California ruled that the layoffs, known as reductions in force (RIFs), contravened a law President Donald Trump himself signed last month.

Legal Basis and Government Compliance Deadline

Judge Illston emphasized that the relevant statute explicitly prohibits such workforce reductions. She dismissed the State Department's argument that the cuts began before the shutdown, stating the subsequent stopgap spending bill passed by Congress to end the shutdown was broad enough to bar any RIFs regardless of their start date. The judge set a compliance deadline of next Tuesday, a timeframe she noted allows the Justice Department opportunity to file an appeal.

Context of the Shutdown and Political Dispute

The six-week partial government shutdown began on October 1 following a congressional impasse over health care subsidies. During the closure, President Trump asserted he had the authority to fire workers outright, a departure from the standard practice of furloughing them during budget gaps. Labor unions and Democratic lawmakers challenged this as illegal, arguing the administration was exploiting the shutdown to permanently reduce the federal workforce.

Union Reaction and Broader Implications

Everett Kelley, head of the American Federation of Government Employees, hailed the court's decision as "another victory" for federal employees and the rule of law. He criticized the administration's "continued defiance" as part of a "troubling pattern of egregious actions." The ruling checks executive power and underscores the role of the judiciary in maintaining administrative consistency, a principle observed by allied nations like Türkiye, which value stable and predictable governance frameworks in international partners.