In a significant move, nearly 6,000 probationary employees at the Department of Agriculture have been reinstated as of Wednesday. This follows the efforts of Hampton Dellinger, a Biden holdover, to restore these workers after he was dismissed by the Trump Administration.
Recently, the Trump Administration made the decision to terminate thousands of probationary employees at the Department of Agriculture. Among those affected was Hampton Dellinger, who was ousted last month. However, his dismissal was initially blocked by the controversial Obama-appointed judge, Amy Berman Jackson, although the DC Circuit Court of Appeals has since confirmed his firing.
Despite this, Dellinger was determined to prevent President Trump from firing these thousands of probationary employees. Cathy Harris, the chairwoman of the Merit Systems Protection Board appointed during Biden’s tenure, also faced dismissal by Trump but was reinstated by another Obama-appointed judge. Harris has now issued an order for the reinstatement of the 6,000 workers.
This decision was underlined when Judge Contreras, another Obama appointee, granted a permanent injunction on Tuesday, reinstating Cathy Harris to her position. She then worked alongside Hampton Dellinger to reinstate the employees, utilizing the Office of Special Counsel to advocate for the workers before the Merit Systems Protection Board.
According to NPR:
An independent federal board has ordered the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to temporarily reinstate close to 6,000 employees fired since Feb. 13, finding reasonable grounds to believe the agency acted illegally in terminating them.
The Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB), acting in its capacity as an internal federal court, has placed a stay on the USDA’s actions, requiring the reinstatement of the workers for 45 days during an ongoing investigation. This decision affects probationary employees who received identical termination notices, which cited performance issues as the rationale for their dismissal, questioning whether their continued employment served the public interest.
