Two Federal Judges Order Re-Instatement of Thousands of Probationary Employees

On Thursday March 13th, a pair of district court orders directed the Trump Administration to temporarily re-instate thousands of probationary employees across multiple federal agencies.

Order to Re-Instate Probationary Employees Across Six Federal Agencies While Case is Ongoing
In response to a lawsuit brought by the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) and other union and advocacy groups, Judge William Alsup, a federal judge in the District of Northern California, issued a preliminary injunction ordering the Trump administration to “immediately” reinstate probationary employees unlawfully terminated across six agencies while the case is ongoing.  These six agencies are: Departments of Defense, Veterans Affairs, Agriculture, Energy, Interior, and Treasury.

Judge Alsup also extended his temporary restraining order against the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), ordering OPM to cease providing guidance to federal agencies on which employees should be terminated.

The agencies are required to provide a compliance report to the Court.  The Trump Administration indicated it will appeal the ruling to the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals.

Order to Temporarily Re-Instate Probationary Employees Across 18 Federal Agencies for 14 Days, While Judge Considers Longer Relief
In response to a lawsuit filed by 20 state attorney generals and the District of Columbia,  Judge James K. Bredar, a federal district court judge in Maryland, issued a temporary restraining order directing the Trump Administration to reinstate unlawfully terminated probationary employees across 18 federal agencies for 14 days.  Judge Bredar said during that time, the court would consider a longer relief.  Bredar’s order also temporarily restrains the Administration from carrying out any planned reductions in force (“RIFs”) across these 18 agencies.

The judge gave the Administration a deadline of March 17 at 1:00p ET to comply with this order, documenting the number of re-instated probationary employees at each agency.  Under the order, “restoring employment” is defined as returning to duty or leave status, including administrative leave.

The 18 agencies required to reinstate unlawfully terminated probationary employees under this order are:  Departments of Agriculture, Commerce, Education, Energy, Health and Human Services, Homeland Security, Housing and Urban Development, Interior, Labor, Transportation, Treasury, Veterans Affairs, as well as the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Environmental Protection Agency, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, General Services Administration, Small Business Administration, and U.S. Agency for International Development.

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