Trump administration takes thousands of workers off, cutting jobs from foreign aid agencies
The Trump administration said on Sunday that it would put the global furlough of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) in addition to a small number of staff and canceled at least 1,600 U.S. jobs.
It's one of the latest and greatest steps President Donald Trump and cost-cutting ally Elon Musk calls it, with their goal to get six decades-old aid and development agencies dirty to cut federal restrictions The broader movement government of scale.
The move comes after a federal judge on Friday allowed the government to push for its plans to evacuate thousands of U.S. Agency workers from the U.S. and around the world. Trump-appointed U.S. District Court Judge Carl Nichols rejected the request in a lawsuit by employees to continue to temporarily block the administration's plans.
“As of Sunday, February 23, 2025, all U.S.A.I.D. directly hired personnel (in addition to designated personnel responsible for mission-critical functions, core leaders and/or specially designated programs, in Globally, according to the Associated Press notice from the United States Agency for International Development workers.
Meanwhile, the agency told employees in the notice that it is starting to reduce effective work, eliminating 2,000 U.S.-based jobs. The notification version later released on the USDA website will reduce the number of jobs to 1,600.
The government has no explanation for the difference. The U.S. Agency for International Development and the State Department did not immediately respond to news seeking comments.
The cuts mean that many Washington staff on vacation will soon eliminate their positions.
Trump appoints USAID deputy administrator Pete Marocco, who plans to put about 600 U.S.-based employees in the job during this period, partly because of arrangements to USAID UNDP staff and travel abroad.
The move escalated a month of push to remove the agency, which included closing headquarters in Washington and shutting down thousands of aid and development programs around the world after freezing on all foreign aid. The judge later temporarily blocked the funds from being frozen. Trump and Musk believe that the work of the United Nations Agency for International Development is a waste and promotes the liberal agenda.
As the United States abandons much of its global “soft power” by trying to shut down agencies like the United States Agency for International Development, countries like Canada are adapting how they provide foreign aid. The state asks foreign aid expert Kate Higgins and global strategy analyst Noam Unger explain how aid cuts can destroy the world and make humanitarian disasters worse.
The lawsuits by Government Workers Unions, U.S. International Development contractors and others say the government lacks constitutional powers to eliminate independent agencies or congressional funded programs without the approval of lawmakers.
The Trump administration’s efforts have upended decades of U.S. policies that serve national security by stabilizing regions, economies and building alliances.
According to the copy viewed by the AP, the notice of fire and leaves has received an unnamed termination letter in the past week among hundreds of USAID contractors.
Donald Trump's administration has frozen for 90 days on most U.S. foreign aid managed by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). The program is affecting countless organizations, including some in Quebec and other parts of Canada.
Workers noted that the general nature of the notification letter was given to U.S. Agency for International Development contractors (excluding the names or positions of the persons who received these contracts), which could make it difficult for fired workers to obtain unemployment benefits.
In a second lawsuit last week related to the United States Agency for International Development, another judge said in the second lawsuit that the government has been withheld foreign aid and must resume global plans, despite his order temporarily preventing funds from freezing. funds.
Nichols’ separate ruling on Friday also cleared the way for the government to start the clock before the planned 30-day deadline if they want the government to pay for travel so that U.S.A.I.D. staff and their families Return home.
Nichols, who was nominated for a position in the District of Columbia in 2018, said he assured the administration that foreign workers could be allowed to stay at work even if they choose to stay overseas.
Foreign staff are concerned that funding flows and the filth of most headquarters staff can lead to difficulties in returning safely and orderly, especially those with children in schools, selling homes and sick family members.
The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) notice Sunday said it was “committed to keep its overseas personnel safe” and promised not to truncate foreign employees with agency systems and other support.
