US Judge Halts Trump's Planned Layoffs Of Federal Workers Amid Government Shutdown

Last Updated:October 16, 2025, 02:30 IST

Judge Susan Illston blocked Trump’s layoffs of 4,100 federal workers, calling them unlawful and politically motivated against Democrat-backed agencies.

US President Donald Trump. (Reuters File)

US District Judge in San Francisco on Wednesday ordered President Donald Trump-led administration to immediately put a halt in the effort to lay off about 4,100 federal workers during the government shutdown, saying the move is unlawful.

CNN quoted judge Susan Illston as saying that she was granting a request from unions representing federal workers for an emergency order pausing the layoffs that began last Friday. “As of right now, the (temporary restraining order) is in effect," she said.

The order has barred the administration from ordering any more layoffs for members of several unions that filed the lawsuits last month.

The judge, Illston, said she has seen evidence suggesting the administration had “taken advantage of the lapse in government spending, in government functioning, to assume that that all bets are off, that the laws don’t apply to them anymore".

CNN quoted her as saying that she believed the planned layoffs were impermissible, in part, because they’re “politically motivated," and pointed to statements by President Donald Trump that officials were targeting programs and agencies favored by Democrats.

“The politics that infuses what’s going on is being trumpeted out loud in this case," the judge said.

“And there are laws which govern how we can do the things we do. Including laws which govern how we do (reductions in force)," she added. “And the activities being undertaken here are contrary to the laws."

Last week, the Trump administration laid off 4,100 employees of multiple agencies after the shutdown began on October 1.

Ahead of the ruling on Wednesday, Office of Management and Budget Director Russ Vought said the number of layoffs will likely reach “north of 10,000."

“We’re definitely talking thousands of people. Much of the reporting has been based on kind of court snapshots, which they’ve articulated is in the 4,000 number of people. But that’s just a snapshot, and I think it’ll get much higher," Vought said Wednesday on “The Charlie Kirk Show".

He further said: “It could grow higher. I think we’ll probably end up being north of 10,000. We want to be very aggressive where we can be in shuttering the bureaucracy — not just the funding. We now have an opportunity to do that, and that’s where we’re going to be looking for our opportunities."

News world US Judge Halts Trump's Planned Layoffs Of Federal Workers Amid Government Shutdown

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