A coalition of nonprofits has called on the Supreme Court to uphold a decision by a federal judge in San Francisco mandating the federal government to reinstate over 16,000 probationary employees dismissed by six agencies in February. The group argues that there is no substantial harm in returning the employees to their positions, noting that these individuals had recently held identical roles with the same qualifications and benefits, as detailed in a comprehensive 40-page filing.
Probationary employees, typically new hires within the past year, are not necessarily new to federal employment. These roles were targeted for layoffs as part of a broader downsizing effort by the Trump administration, which, as reported, affected tens of thousands according to Amy Howe at SCOTUSblog.
The nonprofits argue that these layoffs—allegedly directed by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) under misleading justifications—violate several provisions of federal administrative law. U.S. District Judge William Alsup concluded that OPM had instructed agencies to terminate employees under dubious pretenses, despite stating internally that performance ratings were irrelevant to the firings.
In response to the controversy, Judge Alsup issued a preliminary injunction on March 13, compelling OPM and six departments—Veterans Affairs, Agriculture, Defense, Energy, Interior, and the Treasury—to reinstate the terminated employees. The 9th Circuit Court accelerated the government’s appeal but did not suspend Alsup’s order during the appeal process.
Acting Solicitor General Sarah Harris sought Supreme Court intervention, arguing that the judge’s order grants undue influence to third-party groups over federal employment matters. The nonprofits oppose this view, asserting their standing to sue and emphasizing the negative impact of the dismissals on organizations such as veterans’ services. They further contend that reinstating employees undoes wrongful terminations, restoring the pre-termination status quo.
Parallel to Alsup’s ruling, a district court in Maryland also mandated the temporary reinstatement of probationary employees across 20 federal agencies in affected states and the District of Columbia. The 4th Circuit declined to halt this order, reinforcing that the burden on the government to comply with reinstatement is manageable, according to Howe on the Court.