US Judge Blocks Trump’s Plan to Sack 10,000 Federal Workers Amid Government Shutdown

A United States federal judge has temporarily halted President Donald Trump’s plan to lay off thousands of federal workers as the ongoing government shutdown stretches into its third week.

District Judge Susan Illston of San Francisco issued the restraining order on Wednesday following a lawsuit filed by major labor unions, which argued that the mass layoffs violated federal law and endangered workers’ welfare.

According to court documents, the Trump administration had already dismissed more than 4,000 employees, primarily from the Treasury, Health, Education, and Housing departments. The White House budget director, Russ Vought, earlier disclosed that the government planned to cut “north of 10,000” jobs, describing the move as an aggressive effort to “shutter bureaucracy.”

The judge criticized the administration’s handling of the layoffs, noting that many affected workers could not access official notices because their government emails were inactive during the shutdown. Illston also observed that furloughed human resources staff had left employees without essential guidance on severance or healthcare coverage.

Union lawyers said the firings were “not ordinary” and accused the administration of targeting employees perceived to be politically opposed to the president.

Meanwhile, Congress remains gridlocked over the federal budget, with the Senate failing for the ninth time to pass a spending bill that would reopen government offices. The standoff has left about 1.4 million federal employees either working without pay or on enforced leave.

President Trump has defended the layoffs as a necessary step to “trim waste” and redirect funds toward essential services, including the military. However, top Democrat Chuck Schumer condemned the move as “playing politics with people’s livelihoods,” urging the administration to reverse all terminations and return to negotiations.

As the shutdown drags on, analysts warn it could become one of the longest in U.S. history, deepening political division and testing the limits of federal authority over civil service employment.