Appeals Court Denies Trump Admin’s Bid to Stay Order Blocking Mass Firings of Federal Workers

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals says the Trump administration has ‘not identified a federal statute’ granting the authority to conduct mass firings.

People speak with job placement and professional development representatives during a job fair for federal workers fired in recent weeks through job cuts, organized by the National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU) in Kansas City on March 15, 2025. Chase Castor/Reuters

A San Francisco-based federal appeals court on Friday denied the Trump administration’s bid to pause a lower court ruling that had blocked President Donald Trump’s directives for workforce reductions at federal agencies from taking effect.

In a 2-1 decision, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled—with one judge dissenting—that Trump’s executive order directing agency leaders to carry out mass firings “far exceeds the president’s supervisory powers under the Constitution.”