Unions representing federal employees have asked a San Francisco court to block the Trump administration from eliminating more than 10,000 FEMA positions, saying cuts began last month and were downplayed by officials. The filing alleges thousands of temporary contracts and on-call reservist appointments will lapse — about 65 staff were notified on Dec. 31 and hundreds more are expected monthly. The unions argue the planned cuts lack Congressional authorization and violate a law that barred federal layoffs through Jan. 30; they seek to amend a broader lawsuit challenging mass federal layoffs.
Unions Seek Court Order To Halt More Than 10,000 FEMA Job Cuts Amid DHS Funding Fight
Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) employees work ahead of a press conference at the FEMA National Response Coordination Center in Washington, D.C., U.S., January 24, 2026. REUTERS/Nathan Howard
Unions representing U.S. federal employees have asked a San Francisco federal court to block the Trump administration from cutting more than 10,000 positions at the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), according to a filing made late Tuesday.
The unions say workforce reductions at FEMA — the agency that deploys personnel, supplies and equipment to disaster zones — began last month and that the administration has downplayed the scope of the cuts. FEMA, which is part of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), reportedly plans to let expire the temporary contracts of thousands of staff and on-call reservists who respond to emergencies.
About 65 employees were notified on December 31 that their contracts would not be renewed, and the unions say hundreds more will receive similar notices each month. The unions argue the planned actions are unlawful because Congress did not authorize the cuts and because they violate a law passed in November to end a 43-day government shutdown that barred federal agencies from carrying out layoffs through January 30.
Legal Background
The unions are seeking to amend an earlier nationwide lawsuit that challenges mass federal layoffs initiated by the administration. U.S. District Judge Susan Illston previously blocked large-scale federal layoffs while that case proceeded, but the U.S. Supreme Court lifted her injunction in July. More recently, Illston barred the U.S. State Department from laying off roughly 250 employees.
FEMA and DHS did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Wednesday. The filing comes as lawmakers in Congress dispute DHS funding — a fight that could lead to a partial government shutdown — and after the fatal shooting of a second U.S. citizen by federal immigration officers in Minnesota, which has increased tensions around the department's budget.
“All Americans rely on the dedicated FEMA workforce, who devote their careers to helping people in their most desperate moments,” said Everett Kelley, president of the American Federation of Government Employees, the largest federal workers' union, criticizing the administration's moves against FEMA.
President Donald Trump has previously suggested abolishing FEMA and argued that states should assume greater responsibility for emergency preparedness; last year he created a council to review FEMA’s operations. The unions contend that moving forward with mass nonrenewals and dismissals would weaken the nation's disaster response capacity and violate statutory protections for federal employees.
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