The Trump administration is rehiring 24,500 federal workers axed by Elon Musk and his DOGE cost cutters since the inauguration.
The latest blow to Musk’s mission to trim the federal government raises serious questions over the legality of his attempts to slash jobs and budgets with the backing of Donald Trump.
The administration revealed in court papers that 18 government agencies were already working to bring back the probationary employees who were summarily fired by DOGE.
A total of 7,605 people were axed from the Treasury, the Department of Agriculture lost 5,714 jobs and the Health and Human Services laid off more than 3,248, according to the filings made in Baltimore, Maryland.
U.S. District Judge James Bredar ruled last week that the mass DOGE (Department of Government Efficiency) layoffs violated government regulations. He has ordered the fired staff to be reinstated pending further litigation.
In court documents, federal agency officials say the axed employees have either been put back to work or were in the process of returning.
The firings were challenged by 19 states, all Democratic Party led, and the District of Columbia, which said they would trigger a greater demand for unemployment benefits and social services.
A federal judge in San Francisco has also ordered that probationary workers who have worked for the government for less than a year should be reinstated.
The administration has appealed both court decisions.
If the appeals are successful, agency bosses worry the re-hired staffers could be re-fired.
“The tremendous uncertainty associated with this confusion and these administrative burdens impede supervisors from appropriately managing their workforce,” Mark Green, deputy assistant secretary at the U.S. Department of the Interior, wrote in one of the filings, according to Reuters. “Work schedules and assignments are effectively being tied to hearing and briefing schedules set by the courts,” he added.
