Trump Administration's Move To Fire Probationary Employees Gets Halted By Judge: Thumb Your Nose If You Want

On Thursday, a U.S. federal judge directed the Office of Personnel Management to retract memos that encouraged federal agencies to fire probationary employees. The judge declared these memos likely to be illegal.

What Happened: U.S. District Judge William Alsup ruled that the OPM must notify agencies that it lacks the power to insist on the termination of these employees. However, he stopped short of directly ordering the agencies to cease terminations, reported The Hill.

Currently, the ruling is applicable only to agencies linked to the plaintiffs in the lawsuit. However, Judge Alsup advised the government to extend the notification to other agencies as well.

"The agencies could thumb their nose at OPM if they wanted to," Alsup stated, highlighting OPM’s limited authority over the employment decisions of other agencies.

A group of government employee unions had sued the OPM over its directive for agency leaders to fire employees still in their probationary period. This directive, which could have impacted up to 200,000 employees, resulted in a swift downsizing of the workforce across multiple agencies. Meanwhile, cuts are still on the cards for agencies, including the Defense Department.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Kelsey Helland contended that the plaintiffs were mistaking a "request" by OPM for an "order," suggesting that this misunderstanding significantly influences the case.

Judge Alsup is set to issue an opinion with additional details in the near future. An evidentiary hearing is slated for next month, where OPM acting director Charles Ezell is expected to testify.

See Also: Elon Musk Out As Canadian Citizen? Nearly 1% Of Country’s Population Signs Petition To Revoke Citizenship

Why It Matters: This legal development comes in the wake of a series of events that have stirred the U.S. defense sector. In December, Goldman Sachs downgraded a key player in the industry and reiterated a bearish outlook on other defense stocks, citing risks tied to a slowing Pentagon budget and margin pressures under the watch of Elon Musk-associated Department of Government Efficiency.

Over 20 civil service employees have resigned from the DOGE, refusing to participate in the dismantling of what they termed as essential public infrastructure. This was followed by an executive order by President Donald Trump mandating all federal agencies to appoint a DOGE representative to oversee spending and ensure transparency, thereby increasing Musk’s influence over government operations.

Image via Shutterstock

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This story was generated using Benzinga Neuro and edited by Shivdeep Dhaliwal