Deadline For Trumps Federal Worker Buyout Proposal — Temporarily Blocked By Judge

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A federal judge on Thursday temporarily blocked the Office of Personnel Management’s deadline for federal employees to accept the Trump administration’s “deferred resignation” offer.

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U.S. District Judge George O’Toole prevented the agency from implementing the program’s deadline during a brief hearing held hours before federal workers were required notify OPM of whether they would accept or reject the offer step away from their positions. A Justice Department lawyer said OPM would provide notice to federal employees that the deadline is paused pending further legal proceeding. The agency said that is extending the deadline for federal employees the accept the deferred resignation offer to Monday at 11:59 p.m.

Lee Saunders, president of the American Federation of State, Country and Municipal Employees, one of the unions challenging the Trump administration’s program, said the decision is a “great first step.” The White House personnel office sent out an email last week with the subject line “Fork in the Road” that offered the more than 2 million federal employees deffered resignation. Under the program, they could resign their position and retain full pay and benefits until Sept 30. Federal workers who agreed to resign would also be exempt from in-person work requirements through September, the email stated.

The Trump administration has also taken aim at the U.S. Agency for International Development, or USAID, placing nearly all of its staff on leave and ordering its overseas missions to shut down.