Judge Alsup's order was followed by a similar ruling from Baltimore, Maryland, by District Judge James Bredar, who agreed that Trump's team had broken regulations and cast doubt on the idea that the workers had been individually sacked for unsatisfactory performances.

WASHINGTON >> President Donald Trump’s administration is expected today to move ahead with a second wave of mass firings and budget cuts across the U.S. government, just one day after two federal judges ordered the reinstatement of thousands of workers.

In separate rulings, judges in Maryland and California ordered the reinstatement of probationary workers fired last month across many agencies.