Judge Widens Block on Shutdown-Related Layoffs to Cover More Federal Workers

The judge criticized the layoff plan as ‘politically-motivated’ and ‘arbitrary and capricious.’
Judge Widens Block on Shutdown-Related Layoffs to Cover More Federal Workers
Closed signage is seen around the National Gallery of Art Sculpture Garden on the National Mall in Washington on Oct. 12, 2025. Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
Tom Ozimek
Tom Ozimek
Reporter
|Updated:
0:00

A federal judge has broadened her order blocking the Trump administration from carrying out mass layoffs during the federal government shutdown, extending protections to tens of thousands more federal workers.

At an emergency hearing in San Francisco on Oct. 17, U.S. District Judge Susan Illston expanded her earlier temporary restraining order to cover employees represented by the National Federation of Federal Employees, the Service Employees International Union, and the National Association of Government Employees.

Tom Ozimek
Tom Ozimek
Reporter
Tom Ozimek is a senior reporter for The Epoch Times. He has a broad background in journalism, deposit insurance, marketing and communications, and adult education.
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