The decision could apply more broadly to thousands of other government employees who were fired because they were on probationary status and relatively new in their positions.
The Merit Systems Protection Board’s decision this week means that six fired federal employees will be temporarily reinstated. This is the first step toward what lawyers for fired employees hope will be the restoration of thousands of jobs cut by the Trump administration. The board, an independent agency that considers appeals from federal workers about employment actions, announced its decision late Tuesday. It will remain in effect through April 10 so that the Office of Special Counsel can continue investigating the fired employees’ complaints. The six employees come from six different federal agencies.
According to Raymond A., “I find that there are reasonable grounds to believe that each of the six agencies engaged in a prohibited personnel practice.” Limon, a member of the board, wrote in his order.
In the end, the decision might apply more broadly to thousands of other government workers who were fired because they were on probation and new to their jobs. Mr. also fired the special counsel Hampton Dellinger, the lawyer who was looking into the personnel actions, and Cathy Harris, the chairwoman of the three-person board looking into the claims. Trump earlier this month. They are both fighting their own removals through the legal system, and federal judges have reinstated them temporarily.
Mr. Dellinger leads the Office of Special Counsel, the watchdog agency meant to protect whistle-blowers. He was fired on Feb. 7, but a federal judge ordered that the firing be put on hold until March 1.
The Merit Systems Protection Board that Ms. Harris is in charge of three members, two of whom are Democrats, including Ms. Harris, and one Republican. They were each appointed by presidents and have been confirmed by the Senate. They have seven-year terms that are designed to overlap. Two of the three members may not be members of the same political party. There have been numerous lawsuits challenging Mr. Trump has been in office, several federal judges have directed plaintiffs to make their arguments to the independent boards set up to handle them. In the case of the six fired probationary employees, that is the Merit Systems Protection Board.
The mass firings, which the Trump administration has characterized as necessary cost-cutting measures, are increasing the caseload at the government’s independent review boards. Last fall, the Merit Systems Protection Board received about 100 new cases a week. Between Feb. 16 and Feb. 22, it received 1,845.
On Feb. 21, Mr. Dellinger filed requests with the board to pause the firings of six probationary employees from the departments of Agriculture, Education, Energy, Housing and Urban Development, Veterans Affairs and the Office of Personnel Management.
The Alden Law Group and Democracy Forward, two advocacy groups for lawyers, hope that the pause will be extended to their other clients, probationary employees from nine federal agencies who have also filed complaints with Mr. Dellinger’s office. The first step in challenging their dismissals is to file complaints with his office. As of Wednesday, nearly 20,000 probationary employees have been fired, according to a New York Times analysis.
The probationary firings at the center of the claims Mr. Dellinger is pursuing before the merit protection board are just one phase of Mr. Trump’s strategy to gut the federal work force.
The next phase, which is recently underway, directs agencies to make significant “reductions in force.”
On Wednesday, the Office of Personnel Management published guidance for agencies to carry out those “large-scale” cuts, which Mr. In an executive order dated February 11, Trump demanded. Those cuts are likely to bring additional court challenges.
The Trump Administration’s First 100 Days
Bid to Punish Perceived Rivals: President Trump said that he would strip security clearances from lawyers at a prominent Washington law firm aiding Jack Smith, who led investigations into Trump as special counsel, and end any federal government work the firm may have.
Former Lobbyist at the E.P.A.: Lynn Dekleva, who recently took a senior role at the Environmental Protection Agency, once led an aggressive effort by industry to block regulations on formaldehyde, which can cause cancer and severe respiratory problems.
America’s New Friends: When it comes to the war in Ukraine, Trump finds common cause with Russia, North Korea and Belarus — the world’s outlier states — and stands against traditional U.S. allies.
Trump Eyes the Postal Service: Trump’s attempt to exert more control over the U.S. Postal Service has fueled concerns that those efforts could hurt the agency’s ability to reliably deliver mail to all corners of the country, a mandate that is core to its mission.
Dr. Oz’s Financial Ties: The Times’s examination of the myriad financial interests of Dr. Mehmet Oz, the well-known doctor on television who is being considered for the position of administrator of Medicare and Medicaid, admitted to having murky ties to the industries that he may soon regulate as well as a cozy relationship with health care companies that has lawmakers pondering whether or not he is independent. F.D.A. Reinstates Fired Staffers: The agency changed course just days after firing employees who oversee the safety of food and life-sustaining medical devices. Dozens of workers said they and others were back at work.
