U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols, a Trump appointee, agreed with arguments by two government employee associations that both orders exposed U.S. aid and development workers abroad to unwarranted risk and hardship.

Forced leaves began in Washington and worldwide Friday for most employees of the U.S. Agency for International Development, as federal workers associations turned to the courts to try to roll back Trump administration orders that have dismantled most of the agency and U.

The judge temporarily barred USAID from putting 2,200 workers on paid leave after employee groups filed a lawsuit challenging the administration’s authority to shut down the agency.