An appeals court on Monday rejected the Trump administration’s request for an immediate stay on a lower court ruling that reinstated thousands of probationary federal employees who had been fired.

A three-judge panel on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit ruled that pausing last week’s order by U.S. District Judge William Alsup would disrupt, rather than preserve, the status quo. The court’s unsigned order emphasized that because the lower court found the terminations wrongful, the proper course was to return employees to their previous positions.

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