The Trump administration has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to stop a federal judge's order that mandates rehiring thousands of federal workers. These employees were fired as part of a mass effort to cut down the size of the federal government. The administration filed an emergency appeal on Monday, arguing that no judge should force the executive branch to rehire nearly 16,000 probationary workers who were dismissed.
The appeal also urges the Supreme Court to limit lower courts' ability to block parts of President Donald Trump's agenda. The administration says the rulings from judges like this one have slowed key initiatives.
The order the administration is challenging was issued by U.S. District Judge William Alsup in San Francisco. Judge Alsup ruled that the Trump administration broke federal law when firing probationary workers and demanded that agencies make immediate offers to reinstate them. The agencies involved include Veterans Affairs, Agriculture, Defense, Energy, Interior, and Treasury.
The lawsuit was brought by several labor unions and organizations opposing the workforce reduction. Judge Alsup criticized the administration for allegedly sidestepping proper laws and regulations when it decided to fire probationary workers who had fewer job protections.
The administration says Alsup's ruling is causing major disruptions. Acting Solicitor General Sarah Harris told the court that forcing agencies to reinstate thousands of workers in just days is unreasonable. Harris called it a "massive administrative undertaking" and said it has already caused "irreparable harm" to the executive branch.
The appeal to the Supreme Court comes as another federal appeals court in San Francisco reviews a similar request. Harris stressed that "every additional day" the ruling stays in place forces six agencies to operate under what she described as the judge's control.
This court fight is one of several ongoing legal challenges over the Trump administration's decision to shrink the federal workforce. Other judges have allowed the firings to continue, but Alsup sided with labor unions. He found that the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) wrongly instructed agencies to lay off all probationary employees, many of whom had worked less than a year.
Alsup, who was appointed by former President Bill Clinton, wrote that the firings caused "irreparable harm" to federal labor groups and organizations. He said reinstating these employees was necessary to prevent further damage.
The administration targeted probationary workers because they have fewer rights than permanent federal employees. Unlike permanent employees, they typically cannot appeal their termination unless it involves political discrimination or similar claims.
Harris also told the Supreme Court that some former workers have filed complaints with the Office of Special Counsel. She argued that Alsup's ruling goes against the process Congress created for handling federal worker terminations. She warned that if courts allow unions to bypass this process, it could destabilize the federal system for managing employee disputes.
The Trump administration is now awaiting the Supreme Court's decision on whether to block the ruling.
