Trump administration moves to reinstate 24,000 federal workers after judge’s order

The Trump administration has taken steps to reinstate thousands of probationary workers who were fired in its effort to downsize the federal government, according to court filings in one of two cases where the terminations were deemed unlawful.

U.S. District Judge James Bredar, an appointee of former President Obama, last week ordered the mass reinstatement of fired probationary workers at 18 federal agencies after determining the government’s claims its terminations stemmed from “performance” issues “isn’t true.”

More than a dozen declarations filed by the government Monday night indicate the administration has moved to reinstate more than 24,000 federal probationary employees. The filings provide the clearest look yet at the sweeping terminations.

In them, officials at the agencies said most reinstated workers were placed on paid administrative leave, though some have been returned to full employment.

They warned that the change could cause chaos for fully reinstated employees, in particular, who must be onboarded and trained again but could lose their positions once more if an appellate ruling reverses Bredar’s decision.

“Whether required by operation of the TRO here or another court or administrative order, reinstatement of removed employees to full duty status could impose burdens on DOE and cause significant confusion and turmoil for the terminated employees,” Reesha Trznadel, acting chief human capital officer at the Department of Energy, wrote in one of the filed declarations.

The Trump administration has quickly sought to reshape the federal bureaucracy, including by firing thousands of employees in their probationary period, which typically extends for the first year or two of a given employee’s role.

Bredar’s ruling followed a similar order by a federal judge based in San Francisco to reinstate those terminated at six agencies, after he determined the firings were illegal just hours prior. Those six agencies were encompassed by Bredar’s ruling, too.