Last Friday, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced department cutbacks. This is part of the Trump Administration’s move to reduce the government workforce.
According to Mike Stobbe and Carla K. Johnson of The Associated Press, “the cuts included nearly 1,300 probationary employees at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention — roughly one-tenth of the agency’s workforce.”
An audio recording was shared with The Associated Press, stating that affected individuals were notified of termination by email on Friday, February 14. Some of them will receive “four weeks paid administrative leave.”
Additionally, “those being fired included all first-year officers — about 50 in total — in the CDC’s Epidemic Intelligence Service, according to two agency employees who communicated with some of the affected staffers. The two spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity for fear of retribution.” These individuals are just less than half of the EIS’s staff. “EIS officers often are sent to different states and countries to become primary investigators of outbreaks and emerging health dangers.”
It's worth noting that workers who are newly promoted are also probationary employees.
