US judge halts Trump administration move to layoff HHS employees

A U.S. federal judge has put a stop to the Trump administration’s plans to significantly downsize the workforce and close several agencies within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Reuters reported on Tuesday.

U.S. District Judge Melissa DuBose, in Providence, Rhode Island, on Tuesday granted an injunction in response to a legal challenge from a coalition of Democratic-run states that opposed HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s plans in March to consolidate agencies and eliminate 10,000 jobs at the department.

The states argued that the layoffs, combined with previous buyout offers and the dismissal of probationary employees, reduced the full-time HHS workforce from 82,000 to 62,000 and allegedly hindered key offices from meeting their statutory responsibilities.

In the lawsuit, filed on May 5, the Democratic attorneys general from 19 states and the District of Columbia contended that the administration violated the U.S. Constitution by overstepping Congress’ role in establishing and funding agency operations.

They asserted that these cuts impeded the CDC’s ability to fulfill its legal obligations to investigate diseases, particularly due to laboratory closures.