Trump administration starts mass layoffs across government
President Donald Trump’s administration carried out mass firings across the federal government, affecting thousands of workers.
President Donald Trump’s administration carried out mass firings Thursday and Friday across the federal government, affecting thousands of workers who had been on the job for less than two years.
The terminations affected some of the most widely respected federal agencies, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Homeland Security, as well as lower-profile offices with critical roles in the nation’s security such as the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA). That agency designs, builds and oversees the U.S. nuclear weapons stockpile.
The cuts, affecting employees categorized as “probationary,” are the latest step in the far-reaching plans by Trump and tech billionaire Elon Musk to slash the size of the government.
In the federal government, nearly all new hires begin with a probationary period of a year, sometimes more, where they have fewer protections, making them easy targets for the Trump administration.
The purge, just ahead of a long President’s Day weekend, was swift. Some employees at the CDC were told they had two hours to collect their belongings and leave before losing access to the building, according to a CDC employee.
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