President Donald Trump of the United States announced a significant administrative change on Sunday that could lead to the termination of over 2000 workers. Reportedly, the White House has told most USAID employees to take time off, except for those who have mission-critical duties.
Despite opposition from workers affected by the plan, the move came after a federal judge gave the go-ahead to move forward with the plan. On February 23, 2025, the notice was sent to everyone who works for USAID.
Republican President Donald Trump and his chief cost-cutter, Elon Musk, say that USAID’s efforts to help and develop countries are wasteful and push a liberal agenda.
As a result, the DC office of the agency has been shut down, and many US-funded aid programs around the world have been stopped. This move is part of a larger effort to stop getting help from other countries.
Impact on USAID Contractors
Over the weekend, hundreds of USAID contractors got letters which told them they were being fired without naming them or stating their jobs. It might be harder for them to get unemployment benefits because of this lack of information. Workers were worried about how generally these notifications were sent.
Another judge temporarily lifted the ban on foreign aid because of a second lawsuit related to dismantling USAID. According to the judge, the administration had to temporarily restore funding to global programs. These court cases show that disagreements still exist about how the administration handles foreign aid.
Legal Challenges and Reactions
Carl Nichols, a US District Judge, turned down requests to keep the government’s plan on hold temporarily in a lawsuit involving employees. According to this decision, the administration was able to carry out its plan to cut USAID staff both at home and abroad.
Coupled with the notices were form letters ending contracts for many USAID contractors. Individuals who received these letters did not give clear information about their names or jobs, which raised concerns about possible problems in getting unemployment benefits for those affected.
The administration’s actions against USAID are getting worse because of this new information. Earlier attempts to cut down on foreign aid by ending many aid and development projects around the world happened in response to this.
