U.S. Forest Service pauses seasonal employee hiring amid budget shortfall
The U.S. Forest Service says it will pause seasonal employee hiring in the next fiscal year because of expected budget cuts.
The U.S. Forest Service says it will not hire seasonal employees in the next fiscal year because of expected cuts to its budget, just as fire seasons grow longer, hotter and deadlier.
Rank-and-file employees and union representatives have warned for years that low pay is leading firefighters to find employment elsewhere, contributing to high attrition rates that leave national forests more susceptible to wildfires.
“We’re losing a lot of the most experienced people right now, and there’s no incentive to replace them,” said Andy Vanderheuel, a spokesman for the National Federation of Federal Employees, a union that represents federal firefighters, referring to financial struggles within the agency.
The lack of seasonal hires next year will not affect the agency’s ability to respond to wildfires, officials said, but it could affect trail maintenance, fisheries, recreation services, engineering and surveying.
The Forest Service, which declined to say how much its budget is expected to shrink in fiscal year 2025, is pre-emptively tightening its belt and telling regional directors to plan for less spending.
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