Judge blocks State Department layoffs

The State Department cannot proceed with its reorganization, which was set to include thousands of layoffs, after a federal judge on Friday updated a previous ruling blocking federal workforce reductions to include the agency’s plans. 

State was already subject to an injunction that blocked most major federal agencies from issuing reductions in force, but the Trump administration had argued the department was a “special case” that merited different treatment. California-based District Judge Susan Illston rejected that argument, however, and on Friday issued a new order demanding State not proceed with planned layoffs. 

The administration had argued State’s reorganization was conducted separately from President Trump’s mandate that all agencies slash their workforces and instead occurred only at the instruction of Secretary Marco Rubio. Because Illston’s order applied only to Trump’s executive order and subsequent guidance from the Office of Management and Budget and the Office of Personnel Management, Justice Department lawyers said, State’s plans were not subject to the injunction.

Those attorneys said State could begin issuing layoffs as soon as Friday, but employees were subsequently told that would not occur. Still, absent the court’s intervention, the RIF notices were expected to hit inboxes in the coming days or weeks. All told, State is looking to shed its workforce by 3,400 employees. 

The department’s employees are not out of the woods yet: Illston’s larger injunction is now pending before the Supreme Court, with a decision expected any day. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals previously rejected the administration’s efforts to overturn Illston’s order. 

State has continued to prepare for RIFs. Last week, it sent a message to all civil service employees asking them to upload their resumes to an internal site by June 13 to “prepare for the reorganization.” It also asked staff to ensure all the information in their personnel files was accurate. Those steps are common just before agencies implement RIFs to enable HR offices to ensure they are relying on up-to-date information and determine their employee eligibility for other positions if they are laid off.

Other agencies have similarly taken steps so they can swiftly implement layoffs if the Supreme Court rules in the administration’s favor. 

The plaintiffs in the case had asked Illston to also reverse firings of dozens of probationary employees at the Housing and Urban Development Department, but the judge said she needed more information and instructed the Trump administration to allow her to review HUD’s reorganization plan.