The Trump administration’s workforce reduction measures had left federal workers anxious and bewildered. Unknown about their future, the probationary staff who lack civil service protections are struggling to find a way to save their job.
Federal employees expressed significant distress on Friday regarding the administration’s latest workforce reduction initiative. As dismissal notices circulated throughout agencies, affected staff nationwide struggled with the sudden changes.
Several employees who had accepted deferred resignation offers found themselves terminated regardless, raising questions about others in similar situations.
Trump gave 30 minutes to leave
Some federal staff members facing termination were given a mere 30 minutes to collect their items and depart from government premises. Moreover, the firing was done via Microsoft Teams group calls or pre-recorded messages. Some were told that they would be laid off over email but never received such mails.
Following Donald Trump’s directive, federal organisations were instructed to dismiss primarily probationary personnel, affecting up to 200,000 staff members, with some being hastily escorted out, according to the Washington Post.
Friday witnessed additional extensive job cuts as the US interior department terminated approximately 2,300 staff members.
The interior department, responsible for the nation’s natural resources and administration of 500m acres of public territory, including national parks, underwent significant staff reductions. Three anonymous sources with direct knowledge confirmed these widespread dismissals to Reuters.
Reuters also reported dismissals of probationary staff at two US agriculture department research facilities, citing two unnamed sources. While the precise number of dismissed employees remains unconfirmed, the terminations reportedly occurred overnight.
‘It’s just been chaos’
A disabled Army paratrooper, David Rice, discovered his termination from the US department of energy on Thursday evening, where he had been serving as a probationary employee since September.
Rice, who handled foreign affairs specialising in radiation exposure health matters, had received assurances about his position’s security. However, upon logging in for a meeting Thursday evening, he discovered his termination notice via email.
“It’s just been chaos,” stated Rice, 50, who relocated to Melbourne, Florida, and purchased a house after securing the position.
Whilst supporting government efficiency measures, Rice expressed dissatisfaction with the implementation. “It’s just random people, they’re probational people, getting fired for no reason other than the fact that they’re easier to let go,” he explained.
He emphasised that government workers aren’t adversaries. “We’re just out here trying to do something that we actually believe in, that matters,” Rice said.
A judicial order has temporarily halted mass redundancies and data removal at the consumer financial protection bureau. This came after the employees’ union initiated legal proceedings, with their legal representatives emphasising the urgency to prevent widespread dismissals and data elimination.
The directive remains effective until March 3, when US District Judge Amy Berman Jackson will review the case. The administration has already suspended most CFPB operations and closed its premises. The organisation was established post-2008 financial crisis to safeguard consumer interests.
None of this has been done thoughtfully or carefully
Nicholas Detter, formerly employed in Kansas as a natural resource specialist supporting farmers with soil and water conservation, received his dismissal via email Thursday night. Despite agreeing to the administration’s deferred resignation scheme, promising payment until September 30, Detter never received the official agreement despite his documented acceptance.
“None of this has been done thoughtfully or carefully,” he remarked, noting that such dismissals would create significant delays in the programme established after the 1930s Dust Bowl.
Andrew Lennox, a 10-year Marine veteran and probationary employee at the Veterans Affairs Medical Centre in Ann Arbor, Michigan, received an unexpected termination email Thursday evening.
“In order to help veterans, you just fired a veteran,” said Lennox, 35, an ex-USMC infantryman with service in Iraq, Afghanistan and Syria. Having joined the VA in mid-December, Lennox expressed his desire to continue serving. “This is my family, and I would like to do this forever,” he stated.
The VA announced over 1,000 dismissals on their website, citing annual savings exceeding $98 million and improved veteran services. “I was like: ‘What about this one,'” Lennox commented.
CDC workforce faces major reduction under Trump administration
Approximately 1,300 probationary staff at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will lose their positions, representing about 10% of the agency’s total workforce under the Trump administration’s directive.
CDC leadership received verbal notification during a Friday meeting with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, according to an anonymous federal official present at the meeting who spoke to The Associated Press confidentially.
The impacted staff will receive four weeks of paid administrative leave, though the timing of individual notifications remains unclear.
The CDC, operating with a £9.2 billion core budget, serves as America’s primary defence against public health threats. Prior to these reductions, the organisation employed approximately 13,000 people, including over 2,000 staff stationed internationally.
Trump administration removes nuclear staff, who oversee country’s weapons stockpile
Trump administration officials terminated over 300 personnel on Thursday night at the National Nuclear Security Administration, an organisation responsible for nuclear stockpile management, as part of wider Energy Department redundancies, according to four informed sources.
CNN sources indicated the officials appeared unaware of the agency’s role in overseeing American nuclear weapons.
An Energy Department representative challenged the reported figures, informing CNN that “less than 50 people” were “dismissed” from NNSA, primarily those in administrative and clerical positions.
The organisation began withdrawing the dismissals on Friday morning.
The dismissed staff included NNSA personnel stationed at nuclear weapons manufacturing facilities. These employees supervised contractors involved in nuclear weapons production and conducted weapons inspections.
The terminations also affected NNSA headquarters staff responsible for documentation.
