A court filing revealed the Trump administration fired over 4,000 federal workers on Friday due to the ongoing partial government shutdown.
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According to The New York Post, the mass layoffs will affect government workers in at least seven Cabinet-level agencies. Per the outlet, the information was revealed in a court filing by federal employee labor unions suing to stop the Trump administration from firing workers during the shutdown.
Most layoffs occurred at the Treasury Department (about 1,446 employees) and the Department of Health and Human Services (up to 1,200 employees).
The Department of Education fired 466 employees; Housing and Urban Development laid off 442; Commerce terminated 315; Energy cut 187; and Homeland Security laid off 176.
The Justice Department filing indicates other agencies have also announced plans for workforce reductions.
For example, the Environmental Protection Agency notified approximately 20–30 employees of potential future termination. Separately, the United States Patent and Trademark Office issued shutdown-related RIF notices to 126 employees on October 1.
“Other Defendant agencies (in addition to some of those agencies identified above) are actively considering whether to conduct additional RIFs related to the ongoing lapse in appropriations,” the DOJ explained in the filing.
“Other Defendant agencies have made predecisional assessments regarding offices and subdivisions that may be considered for potential RIFs based on the criteria outlined in the OPM Lapse Email. But those assessments remain under deliberation and are not final,” the document added.
Trump Administration Pushes Back at Temporary Restraining Order
The Trump administration argued that since the RIF notices “call for separation of employment within 30 or 60 days,” a temporary restraining order blocking the layoffs would not be necessary.
“Plaintiffs fail to establish irreparable harm,” the DOJ noted. “Their asserted harms — which stem from future loss of federal employment — would not take place until weeks or months from now, if at all.”
District Judge Susan Illston, appointed by former President Bill Clinton, has scheduled a hearing for next Thursday to address the labor unions’ request for a temporary restraining order.
Friday marked the 10th day of the government shutdown.
On Friday, White House Budget Director Russ Vought announced that permanent job cuts had commenced. This followed another instance where Senate Democrats blocked a short-term funding bill intended to reopen the government.
“The RIFs have begun,” he wrote on X Friday morning.