A US judge has temporarily halted the implementation of President Donald Trump's February order, preventing multiple federal agencies from moving forward with planned mass layoffs of government workers.

On Friday, US District Court Judge Susan Illston of California issued a two-week pause, stating that the Trump administration's efforts to cut the federal workforce likely needed congressional approval.

"The Court holds the President likely must request Congressional cooperation to order the changes he seeks, and thus issues a temporary restraining order to pause large-scale reductions in force in the meantime," Illson wrote in her halt order.

Since retaking office in January, Trump has instructed federal agencies to develop extensive workforce reduction strategies as part of broader initiatives led by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), headed by Elon Musk, aimed at shrinking the size of the federal government.

In a February 11 executive order, Trump demanded a "critical transformation of the Federal bureaucracy" while instructing agencies to eliminate workers not classified as essential.

Mass layoffs sweep US

Since then, thousands of federal workers have been dismissed, either put on administrative leave or completely fired in the case of probationary workers.

According to a February 14 Reuters report, the Department of Energy (DOE) has laid off 1,200–2,000 employees, including hundreds managing the nuclear stockpile, while the Interior Department cut 2,300 workers, impacting public land and park oversight.

The CDC lost nearly 1,300 staff, about a third of its workforce, raising concerns about public health response. Additional cuts affected the Agriculture, Veterans Affairs, Education, and Small Business Administration departments, with further layoffs expected in financial and industry regulatory agencies.

CBS News reported that around two dozen US states filed a lawsuit against the White House over sweeping AmeriCorps cuts, arguing the move violates federal law and the constitutional separation of powers on May 1.

The lawsuit alleges that, in anticipation of upcoming job cuts, 85% of AmeriCorps employees have already been placed on administrative leave, and the states contend that these measures exceed executive authority, given that the AmeriCorps agency was both created and funded by Congress.