WASHINGTON – The Trump administration said Sunday that it is eliminating 2,000 positions at the U.S. Agency for International Development and placing all but a fraction of other staffers worldwide on leave.

More federal layoffs

The backstory:

It comes after a federal judge on Friday allowed the administration to move forward with pulling thousands of USAID staffers off the job in the United States and around the world. U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols rejected pleas that came in a lawsuit from employees to keep temporarily blocking the government’s plan.

“As of 11:59 p.m. EST on Sunday, February 23, 2025, all USAID direct hire personnel, with the exception of designated personnel responsible for mission-critical functions, core leadership and/or specially designated programs, will be placed on administrative leave globally,” according to the notices sent to USAID workers and viewed by The Associated Press.

Citing a big concern for workers stationed overseas who have reported being cut off from government communications, the notices say that “USAID is committed to keeping its overseas personnel safe. Until they return home, personnel will retain access to Agency systems and to diplomatic and other resources.”

The administration said employees put on leave overseas are expected to receive “voluntary Agency-funded return travel” and other benefits.

Nichols, who was nominated by Trump, said he had been “very concerned” about workers in high-risk areas left overseas without access to emergency communications. But he said he has since been reassured by the administration that workers would still have access to two-way radios that allow 24–7 communications in emergencies, as well as a phone app with a “panic button.”

The judge said the government’s statements persuaded him “that the risk posed to USAID employees who are placed on administrative leave while stationed abroad — if there is any — is far more minimal than it initially appeared.”

Big picture view:

The notices of firings and leaves come on top of hundreds of USAID contractors receiving no-name form letters of termination over the weekend, according to copies that AP viewed.

The blanket nature of the notification letters to USAID contractors, excluding the names or positions of those receiving it, could make it difficult for the dismissed workers to get unemployment benefits, workers noted.

A different judge in a second lawsuit tied to the dismantling of USAID has temporarily blocked the freeze on foreign assistance and said this past week that the administration had kept withholding the aid despite his court order and must at least temporarily restore the funding to programs worldwide.

What is USAID?

Dig deeper:

USAID offers assistance to countries recovering from disasters, trying to escape poverty, and engaging in democratic reforms, including war-torn Gaza and West Africa also recovering from years of vicious wars. The U.S. is by far the world’s largest donor of humanitarian aid, with USAID administering billions of dollars in humanitarian, development and security assistance in more than 100 countries. 

President John F. Kennedy created the organization at the height of the Cold War to counter Soviet influence. Congress passed the Foreign Assistance Act in 1961, and Kennedy signed that law and an executive order establishing USAID as an independent agency.

The U.S. spends less than 1% of its budget on foreign assistance, a smaller share overall than some other nations.