Trump administration asks SCOTUS to halt order to rehire federal workers

The Trump administration on Monday asked the Supreme Court to block a district judge’s order to rehire thousands of probationary federal workers. The emergency appeal says the order violates the separation of powers doctrine and the executive branch’s authority to downsize its agencies.

What did the rehiring order require the Trump administration to do? The order, which came earlier this month from U.S. District Judge William Alsup in San Francisco, directed six government agencies to immediately reinstate more than 16,000 fired probationary employees. Alsup said the firings didn’t follow the procedures laid out in federal law. The affected departments are Veterans Affairs, Agriculture, Defense, Energy, the Interior, and the Treasury. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld Alsup’s decision.

Several other lawsuits about federal worker firings are ongoing. The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday refused to pause an order to rehire 25,000 workers at 18 federal agencies.

Is the Trump administration currently obeying Alsup’s order? The appeal to the Supreme Court, filed by acting Solicitor General Sarah M. Harris, said government agencies were reinstating thousands of employees and assigning them tasks. The effort is causing a significant financial and logistical burden, Harris said.

Dig deeper: Read Lauren Canterberry’s recent report on how the Trump administration is asking the Supreme Court to intervene on birthright citizenship changes.