The Trump administration is firing 2,000 USAID workers and putting thousands of others on leave [View all]

Last edited Sun Feb 23, 2025, 05:18 PM - Edit history (1)

Source: AP

Updated 4:53 PM EST, February 23, 2025


WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration said Sunday that it is eliminating 2,000 positions at the U.S. Agency for International Development and placing all but a fraction of other staffers worldwide on leave.

It comes after a federal judge on Friday allowed the administration to move forward with pulling thousands of USAID staffers off the job in the United States and around the world. U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols rejected pleas that came in a lawsuit from employees to keep temporarily blocking the government’s plan.

“As of 11:59 p.m. EST on Sunday, February 23, 2025, all USAID direct hire personnel, with the exception of designated personnel responsible for mission-critical functions, core leadership and/or specially designated programs, will be placed on administrative leave globally,” according to the notices sent to USAID workers and viewed by The Associated Press. At the same time, the agency said it is cutting the U.S.-based workforce by about 2,000 employees.

The move escalates a monthlong administration assault on the agency that has closed its headquarters in Washington and shut down thousands of U.S. aid and development programs worldwide following an effort to freeze foreign assistance. President Donald Trump and his chief cost-cutter, Elon Musk, contend the aid and development work is wasteful and furthers a liberal agenda.

Read more: https://apnews.com/article/usaid-trump-musk-foreign-aid-firings-a3af8ce6ef17878b718c8e2ed3bf98e4