Federal Judge Orders Trump Administration to Temporarily Reinstate Fired Federal Workers
Maria Carrasco
March 18, 2025
A coalition of 20 Democratic state attorneys general filed a lawsuit on Thursday against the Department of Education (ED) and President Donald Trump, seeking to block the administration’s latest plan to lay off nearly half of ED’s workforce. And late on Thursday night, a federal judge ruled in favor of the 20 states, ordering the Trump administration to reinstate thousands of fired probationary federal workers – including those at ED.
On Tuesday, Education Secretary Linda McMahon announced that the department plans to implement a reduction in force (RIF) to lay off nearly 50% of its staff across all divisions in part of an effort to improve efficiency and accountability. ED has not confirmed specifics on which employees were laid off, but there has been some information shared online giving a rough outline of which offices were hit the hardest – which includes Federal Student Aid (FSA). While laid-off staffers are still technically employed until March 21, they’ve had limited access to their email, phones and computers since the notice was released.
The 20 states in the lawsuit, which was filed in Massachusetts, alleged that the layoffs are illegal and the Trump administration does not have the power to dismantle any agency or override the agency’s statutory requirements. Ultimately, the states are seeking a court order to block the Trump administration from gutting ED’s workforce.
