A U.S. District Court judge has ruled that former President Donald Trump must reinstate thousands of federal employees who were dismissed under what the court deemed to be false pretenses.
Judge William H. Alsup of California found that at least 30,000 probationary employees across multiple federal agencies—including the Department of Veterans Affairs, Department of Energy, Department of Defense, Department of Agriculture, Department of the Treasury, and the Department of the Interior—were wrongfully terminated on the grounds of alleged poor performance.
The mass firings were carried out by the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE)—a controversial entity tasked with restructuring the federal workforce. DOGE, spearheaded by Tesla CEO Elon Musk and former Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, aimed to streamline government operations by slashing thousands of jobs and significantly reducing federal expenditures. The department has vowed to disband by July 4, 2026—coinciding with the nation’s Independence Day.
Trump has defended DOGE’s mission, stating its primary goal is to “dismantle government bureaucracy, slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditures, and restructure federal agencies.”
However, during a court session on March 13, Judge Alsup condemned the mass firings, stating:
“It is a sad day when our government fires good employees and claims it was due to poor performance when they know full well that’s a lie.”
Many of the affected employees had previously received positive performance evaluations but were still dismissed under DOGE’s directive.
This is not the first time Judge Alsup has ruled against the terminations. On February 27, he declared the firings illegal, stating that the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) lacked the authority to order such widespread dismissals. Following the initial ruling, OPM revised a January 20 memo concerning probationary employees—an action that the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) sees as an admission of wrongdoing.
In a statement, AFGE asserted:
“OPM’s revision of its January 20 memo is a clear admission that it unlawfully directed federal agencies to carry out mass terminations of probationary employees—aligning with Judge Alsup’s recent decision in our lawsuit challenging these illegal firings. Every agency should immediately rescind these terminations and reinstate all those who were unlawfully dismissed.”
In response to the lawsuit, the federal judge has also ordered DOGE to disclose its full government restructuring plan and identify all individuals involved in its decision-making process.
This ruling marks a significant legal setback for Trump, Musk, and Ramaswamy’s efforts to overhaul the federal workforce. Further developments are expected as the case progresses.
