Judicial Blow to Trump: Mass Federal Worker Firing Blocked

United States (The Uttam Hindu): A federal judge has ordered the US government to reverse mass firings of federal employees linked to Donald Trump and Elon Musk’s plan to significantly reduce the government workforce. The ruling instructs the **Office of Personnel Management (OPM)** to withdraw directives that led to the dismissal of thousands of employees across multiple federal agencies. The judge ruled that OPM lacked the authority to issue such an order, stating that hiring and firing powers rest solely with individual agencies as granted by Congress.  

The decision marks another legal setback for Trump, following recent court rulings that blocked his ban on refugee admissions and his executive order challenging birthright citizenship. The lawsuit against the mass firings was filed by unions and advocacy groups, arguing that the dismissals were illegal and unfairly targeted probationary employees—those in their first or second year of federal employment. The court found that the order overstepped OPM’s constitutional and statutory authority, branding it as one of the largest employment violations in US history.  

The ruling has significant implications for the federal workforce, with tens of thousands of employees affected by the decision. Legal representatives of the plaintiffs argued that OPM had no constitutional or regulatory power to instruct agencies to terminate employees. With the court’s intervention, the government will now be required to reinstate those who were wrongfully dismissed, setting a critical precedent for employment protections in federal agencies.