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Massive layoffs at the U.S. Department of Education can move forward, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled Monday, while a lawsuit challenging those layoffs plays out in the lower courts.
The 6-3 decision Monday overturns a U.S. District Court judge’s order that Education Department employees be brought back to work. A coalition of states, school districts, teachers unions, and education advocacy groups had argued that the layoffs were so extensive they prevented the Education Department from doing its job under the law.
The majority did not issue an opinion explaining their decision. Allowing the layoffs to move forward for now is consistent with other recent Supreme Court decisions allowing the Trump administration to remove federal employees.
The decision is a major blow to education leaders and advocates fighting to preserve a fully functioning federal department.
Education Secretary Linda McMahon previously described the layoffs as a first step toward President Donald Trump’s goal of eliminating the Department of Education, although only Congress can officially shut down the department.
“Today, the Supreme Court again confirmed the obvious: the President of the United States, as the head of the Executive Branch, has the ultimate authority to make decisions about staffing levels, administrative organization, and day-to-day operations of federal agencies,” McMahon said in a press release. “While today’s ruling is a significant win for students and families, it is a shame that the highest court in the land had to step in to allow President Trump to advance the reforms Americans elected him to deliver using the authorities granted to him by the U.S. Constitution.”
Justice Sonia Sotomayor called the decision “indefensible” in a dissent joined by her two liberal colleagues, Justices Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson.
“When the Executive publicly announces its intent to break the law, and then executes on that promise, it is the Judiciary’s duty to check that lawlessness, not expedite it,” Sotomayor wrote.
McMahon laid off roughly 1,300 department employees in March, a week after she was confirmed by the Senate. Coupled with early retirements and buyouts, the move halved the size of the department. A few days later, Trump signed an executive order directing McMahon to do everything in her legal authority to shut down the department.
The Office for Civil Rights, Federal Financial Aid, and the Institute of Education Sciences were particularly hard hit.
Despite the previous court order, laid-off employees had remained on administrative leave. In a series of court filings, Education Department leaders said they were working through logistics about parking and desk space.
McMahon said Monday the Education Department “will now deliver on its mandate to restore excellence in American education.” She said the department continues to fulfill its obligations under the law while reducing bureaucracy.
Sheria Smith, president of the American Federation of Government Employees Local 252, which represents Education Department employees, called the ruling a “disservice to the American people.” She said McMahon and the Trump administration have a choice in what happens next.
“The agency doesn’t have to move forward with this callous act of eliminating services and terminating dedicated workers,” she said in a statement. “We call on the agency to restore our positions and let us return to work, stand up for students, and ensure every child has the support they need to succeed and build a strong future.”
Erica Meltzer is Chalkbeat’s national editor based in Colorado. Contact Erica at emeltzer@chalkbeat.org. Chalkbeat is a nonprofit news site covering educational change in public schools.
