Disability rights groups on Wednesday filed a lawsuit claiming that the US President Donald Trump's administration and billionaire, Elon Musk broke various laws by firing thousands of workers and shuttering offices at the US Social Security Administration.
Five groups and seven social security beneficiaries in the lawsuit filed in Washington, DC federal court said the cuts at the Social Security Administration, SSA, have disproportionately impacted beneficiaries with disabilities and violated their rights under the US Constitution.
DAILY POST reports that Musk's Department of Government Efficiency, DOGE, has spearheaded an aggressive campaign to purge the federal workforce, including firing about 7,000 SSA employees, and slash government spending.
The SSA, which sends checks to 73 million retired and disabled Americans each month, is seen as a crucial provider of benefits to elderly Americans.
It is said to be one of the few government agencies traditionally seen as off limits for cuts by US politicians.
The lawsuit on Wednesday focuses on the mass firings and the closure of offices that investigated civil rights complaints and provided customer service to Social Security beneficiaries.
“The elimination of civil rights enforcement and customer service offices, the closure of offices, and the mass reduction of SSA’s workforce do not promote efficiency – they sabotage the agency’s fundamental mission,” they said.
At the time of filing this report, the White House and the SSA have not made any comment on the development.
The SSA last week said it would delay planned phone service cuts to retirees by two weeks and abandon a rule that would have required some disabled and elderly people to travel to an office to claim their benefits.
