The Trump administration’s aim to downsize the federal government workforce through a massive buyout plan hit another delay Monday when a judge issued a temporary restraining order against the program.
U.S. District Judge George O’Toole, who put a temporary pause on the buyout plan on Thursday, extended his earlier block on Monday after labor unions have decided to mount a legal challenge against the program.
The lawsuit stems from President Donald Trump’s newly created Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), headed by billionaire supporter Elon Musk, and its mission to make massive cuts to government spending and bureaucracy.
An estimated 2 million federal workers were sent emails offering them opportunity to quit their jobs by Feb. 6 and receive eight months pay. As of the deadline, approximately 65,000 employees had accepted the offer.
O’Toole’s attached no deadline to his latest ruling, blocking the buyout program at least “until I respond to the issues presented,” he ruled. Among those issues are the legality of the plan, and whether the buyouts are viable given that the federal government is currently only funded through mid-March.
Those matters are being challenged in lawsuits by four unions — the AFL-CIO, the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSME), and the National Association of Government Employees (NAGE).
