Two Republicans, first-term Rep. Michael Baumgartner, R-Wash., and Rep. Jeff Hurd, R-Colo., have signed on to new legislation that would ensure that recently fired federal probationary workers could reclaim the seniority they built up in their previous positions if later rehired by the government, Politico reported on Tuesday.
Their backing for the Protect Our Probationary Employees Act, which was introduced on Tuesday by Rep. Sarah Elfreth, D-Md., marks the latest response from Republicans who are increasingly feeling political pressure to offer some response to the mass firings of probationary federal workers by Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency.
In the Senate, two Democrats, Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., and Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., introduced companion legislation, stating that they are worried about the lack of due process in the dismissals and the disruption to federal operations, WUSA9 reported.
However, due to Republican control of the White House and both houses of Congress, there is virtually no chance the bill will become law, according to Politico.
In order to avoid backlash from constituents about the DOGE firings, the chair of the House Republican campaign operation told lawmakers last week not to hold in-person town halls.
Elfreth, in sponsoring the bill, said in a statement that "in the past month, we have seen an unprecedented attack on our federal workforce through the indiscriminate firings of probationary employees. These are patriots who serve our country, but instead of being thanked for their service, they were tossed to the curb and told not to let the door hit them on the way out."
Federal workers would only benefit from the Protect Our Probationary Employees Act if they were rehired in their same positions.
But there is some hope that the courts may force the administration to do just that.
A judge has ruled that the mass firings at the behest of DOGE was illegal, but the judge did not order dismissed employees reinstated.
Additionally, the chair of the U.S. Merit Systems Protection Board ordered earlier this month that the Trump administration reinstate thousands of probationary workers fired by the Department of Agriculture.
Brian Freeman ✉
Brian Freeman, a Newsmax writer based in Israel, has more than three decades writing and editing about culture and politics for newspapers, online and television.
© 2026 Newsmax. All rights reserved.