Washington – A federal judge on Friday declined to block the Trump administration from placing thousands of employees with the United States Agency for International Development on administrative leave and recalling others from overseas, allowing President Trump to resume his efforts to overhaul the agency as part of his plans to reduce the size of the federal government.
Mr. Trump appointed U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols, who denied a request for a preliminary injunction made by two labor unions representing Foreign Service and civilian employees.
Nichols issued a temporary order earlier this month, preventing the administration from placing thousands of USAID employees on administrative leave and evacuating workers from overseas posts, as well as ordering the Trump administration to reinstate USAID employees who had already been placed on leave.
However, by declining the request for a preliminary injunction, Nichols now allows the Trump administration to resume its efforts.
In a 26-page decision, the judge stated that the unions’ claims of workplace injuries did not warrant the emergency relief that they sought.
He stated that the Justice Department had convinced the court that the risk to USAID employees placed on administrative leave was “far more minimal than it initially appeared.”
“Plaintiffs have presented no irreparable harm that they or their members are imminently likely to suffer from the hypothetical future dissolution of USAID,” Nichols wrote, adding that employees who are likely to be placed on leave can file a complaint with the appropriate government body.
He went on to say that unions’ complaints about the effects on their members of being placed on leave and asked to return to the United States are “archetypal complaints about changed employment conditions and their follow-on effects — which at this point appear to be largely financial.”
The judge also stated that federal law allows domestic USAID employees or their union representatives to object to being placed on administrative leave, implying that the district court lacks jurisdiction over the unions’ claims.
Nichols determined that the Trump administration had made a valid case that the actions in question “are essential to its policy goals.”
Despite the unions’ claims that USAID workers stationed overseas had been stranded and locked out of computer systems, at times in dangerous situations, Nichols determined that the safeguards in place to keep workers stationed overseas safe were adequate, based on statements made by current USAID leadership.
USAID, founded in 1961, emerged as an early target for Mr. Trump and Elon Musk, who the president claims is leading the White House’s Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, as part of their plan to reduce the size of the federal government.
Shortly after taking office for his second term, the president issued a 90-day moratorium on foreign aid, disrupting foreign development projects and throwing contractors, nonprofit organizations, and international aid groups into confusion.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio told Congress earlier this month that the administration would start the process of potentially reorganizing USAID.
As part of that effort, more than 2,100 employees were placed on administrative leave, with the agency determining that approximately 611 employees were critical. It also ordered those in overseas posts to return to the United States.
The agency had planned to place an additional 2,000 USAID employees on administrative leave by 11:59 p.m. on February 7, but Nichols issued a temporary restraining order that prevented the action and required the Trump administration to reinstate those who had already been affected.
According to the Congressional Research Service, USAID employs over 10,000 people, with approximately 4,800 direct hires stationed in foreign and domestic posts.
Mr. Trump’s efforts against USAID have resulted in several lawsuits, including one filed by a group of nonprofit organizations and contractors who received funding for foreign aid projects.
While the Trump administration intends to place over 4,000 USAID employees on administrative leave due to the union dispute, a federal judge in the nonprofit groups’ case has barred the Trump administration from suspending foreign aid, grants, and contracts while legal proceedings are ongoing.
In addition to USAID, the Trump administration has been firing federal employees throughout the government. Earlier this week, a federal judge allowed Mr. Trump to continue his efforts to reduce the federal workforce, rejecting a request to halt mass terminations of government employees as part of a separate lawsuit brought by a group of labor unions.
As of Friday, the Trump administration had fired at least 12,000 federal employees, according to a CBS News analysis.
