A judge has ordered several federal government agencies to reinstate the jobs of probationary employees fired en masse by the Trump administration last month.
Judge William Alsup called the sacking of these employees part of a "sham" strategy that aimed to circumvent proper procedures for reducing the federal workforce.
The order will apply to thousands of probationary workers who were fired at the Agriculture, Defence, Energy, Interior, Treasury, and Veterans Affairs departments.
During Thursday's hearing, the Department of Justice maintained that the firings were done based on guidance - rather than a directive - from the Office of Personnel Management (OPM).