It once fought the layoffs - then it reversed course, and the courthouse door shut

A federal judge dismissed a lawsuit from two fired probationary workers who wanted a federal watchdog ordered to reopen investigations into their terminations.

The August 24 decision touches a question many HR leaders have watched since early 2025: what can probationary employees do when their jobs vanish in a mass cut?

The two workers held probationary posts at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the Administration for Children and Families. In February 2025, both received termination notices, part of what the court described as a government-wide effort to cut thousands of probationary staff. They complained to the Office of Special Counsel, the agency Congress created to protect federal employees from abuse.

At first, the Office pushed back. Under its then-head, it asked the Merit Systems Protection Board to pause the layoffs, calling them unlawful reductions in force that skipped required steps. The Board agreed in one case, then paused more than 5,000 probationary terminations.

Then the leadership changed. President Trump removed the Office's head and installed a new acting head. On April 8, 2025, the Office issued a directive reversing course, telling staff to close the probationary investigations because the terminations were not prohibited personnel practices. The workers received closure notices citing their probationary status.

They sued, asking the court to...

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