A federal judge has issued a temporary restraining order against the Trump administration's move to place at least 2,200 employees at the US Agency for International Development (USAID) on administrative leave. The order also requires the agency to reinstate 500 workers who had been suspended.
The order, issued by US District Judge Carl Nichols, prohibits the administration from placing any USAID employees on administrative leave and mandates the reinstatement of those already placed on leave until at least February 14. The judge also blocked the evacuation of workers from their host countries before February 14, 2025.
The ruling came just as USAID was preparing to send thousands of employees on indefinite leave or terminate their employment. The judge emphasized the potential harm that employees, especially those working in high-risk environments, could face if they were put on leave without access to critical security resources.
Nichols set a hearing for February 12 to consider a broader block on the administration's plans to dismantle the agency. The emergency order was issued in response to a lawsuit filed by labor groups representing USAID employees.
