Judge temporarily blocks Trump’s effort to eliminate Job Corps, 168 Astoria job cuts on hold

A federal judge has temporarily blocked President Donald Trump’s effort to pull the plug on Job Corps, issuing an order which at least pauses the closure of an Astoria center

that would have eliminated 168 jobs

.

Job Corps is a

free vocational training program

funded by the U.S. Department of Labor for people ages 16 to 24. The Labor Department said last month it would “pause” the program.

On Wednesday, the program’s Astoria location, which is run by a federal contractor, said it would close and eliminate 168 jobs by June 30.

Also on Wednesday, a federal judge in New York City issued a temporary restraining order that prohibits “shutdown tasks,” including eliminating jobs and removing students.

In an email, a spokesperson for the Astoria center said no job cuts have been made at the location and it’s continuing normal operations.

The lawsuit was filed by several contractors that operate Job Corps sites.

“Glad to see the courts blocking Donald Trump’s illegal scheme to end Job Corps & its job training successes in Astoria, Glide & many other places in Oregon + nationwide,” Oregon U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, said Thursday on the social media site X. “I’ll keep fighting in Congress to defend this proven job training pipeline.”

Job Corps site in Troutdale and Portland also had been

expected to close

, according to KGW.

Wednesday’s federal court ruling also set a June 17 hearing.

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