The ruling came hours before the midnight deadline for them to apply for the deferred resignation program, which has commonly described as a "buyout."
U.S. District Judge George O'Toole Jr. in Boston directed the administration to extend that deadline until after a court hearing he scheduled for Monday afternoon. O'Toole did not express an opinion on the legality of the program, which is being challenged by several labor unions, and said he would weigh arguments next week.
At the White House, press secretary Karoline Levitt said more than 40,000 federal workers have applied to leave in return for being paid until Sept. 30.
"We encourage federal workers in this city to accept the very generous offer," she said at about the same time as the judge's ruling came out. "They don't want to come into the office. If they want to rip the American people off, then they're welcome to take this buyout and we'll find highly qualified people" to replace them.
