US federal workers under fire: Trump seeks to slash legal options after firings - Here's why

The Trump administration is aiming to make it more difficult for terminated federal employees to be reinstated by curbing their right to appeal dismissals to an independent board, according to a government plan released on Monday, as reported by Reuters.

“The Office of Personnel Management, the federal government’s HR office, proposed ending the right of fired federal employees to dispute their dismissal before the independent Merit Systems Protection Board,” according to the plan.

Instead, fired workers would need to appeal to OPM, an office whose director reports to U.S. President Donald Trump.

The Merit Systems Protection Board, which handles disputes between federal employees and their agencies, saw a sharp rise in cases after Trump began his second term.

According to government records, the board’s caseload surged by 266% between October 1, 2024, and September 30, 2025, compared with the same period a year earlier, Reuters reported.

If the proposal is implemented, it would build on Trump's earlier efforts to shrink the size of the federal government. Trump has made mass layoffs of government employees a centerpiece of his second term, Reuters reported.

At the same time, he has undermined avenues for those same workers to dispute their dismissals, including by firing members of government offices that enforce job protections for federal employees.

The U.S. government shed 317,000 federal employees in 2025, OPM Director Scott Kupor said late last year. Kupor told Reuters that only a fraction of those who left were fired, with the majority opting to accept a buyout or leave on their own.

(With inputs from Reuters)