The Trump administration is coming down hard on USAID. According to a notice sent to agency workers reviewed by Reuters, Trump is putting all but a few staffers at the US Agency for International Development on paid administrative leave worldwide and also firing around 2000 of those positions.
The decision is one of the biggest steps taken by US President Donald Trump and his ally, Elon Musk, in the effort to cut down the six-decade-old aid and development agency as part of their plan to reduce the size of the federal government.
This decision comes following a federal judge’s ruling on Friday last week which allowed Trump to remove thousands of USAID staff from their jobs worldwide. US District Judge Carl Nichols rejected a request from employees to block the government’s plan temporarily, reported AP.
Starting at 11:59 p.m. EST on Sunday, most USAID staff, except for those in key roles or working on critical programs, will be placed on administrative leave, as stated in notices sent to workers and seen by The Associated Press.
Discrepancy in no. of eliminated USAID positions
Another version of the notice that was posted later on USAID’s website put the eliminated positions’ number lower at 1,600. The AP report said that there has been no explanation from the Trump administration over this discrepancy of numbers. As of now the report suggested that there has been no comment from the USAID and the State Department.
Trump has in the recent past closed the agency’s headquarters in Washington and shut down thousands of air and developmental programmes following the fund freeze. A judge had later blocked the government from freezing these funds.
Many lawsuits filed by the USAID contractors and government worker unions claim that the administration has no authority to eliminate an independent agency without getting approval from lawmakers.