Key Highlights:
- Second Layoff Shock: Many federal employees are receiving their second Reduction in Force (RIF) notice this year after being laid off and later reinstated, creating what one employee calls a “nightmare.”
- Legal Uncertainty: A federal judge has issued a temporary restraining order to block most layoffs, but this offers little comfort to workers already living in fear of losing their jobs and health insurance.
- Devastating Personal Impact: Employees, including one on maternity leave and another who recently had a kidney transplant, share stories of deep financial and emotional distress.
- Service Disruption: The widespread layoffs and furloughs are crippling the ability of agencies like HUD and the National Park Service to serve the public effectively.
A Recurring Nightmare for Federal Workers
For thousands of federal employees, the stability of a government career has turned into a recurring nightmare. Caught in the crossfire of a protracted government shutdown, many are receiving their second layoff notice in less than a year, plunging them back into a state of profound uncertainty and distress.
A temporary court order has blocked the Trump administration from implementing most of these Reductions in Force (RIFs), but for those holding the notices, the damage is already done. “I am reliving the nightmare of the first RIF,” Mayra Medrano, a program analyst at the Commerce Department’s Minority Business Development Agency, told a court. She had received her first notice while in the hospital recovering from a “stress-induced” seizure.
Dorothy Roper, an IT specialist at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, shared a similar story. Her entire team was laid off in April, only to be reinstated. Six months later, another RIF notice arrived. “This RIF and the uncertainty of whether I have a job is causing me deep financial and emotional distress,” Roper wrote in a court filing.
The Human Cost of Job Insecurity
The personal toll of this instability is immense, affecting workers at the most vulnerable moments of their lives.
New Mothers and Families at Risk
LaMarla Stevens, a management analyst at the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), received her RIF notice while on maternity leave. “I do not know whether I will receive back pay for the remainder of my paid maternity leave,” she stated, facing the unexpected and unaffordable cost of childcare if she’s forced to find a new job immediately.
Fears Over Healthcare and Housing
For others, the threat of a layoff is a direct threat to their health and home. Christine Grassman, a 56-year-old blind employee at the Education Department, fears she will lose her house. Daniel Ronneburg, a Federal Aviation Administration employee and union president, fears losing the health coverage essential for his post-transplant care after a life-saving kidney surgery. “I will not be able to afford my post-surgery treatment,” he wrote.
Legal Reprieve Offers Little Comfort
While a federal judge expanded a temporary restraining order to cover more unions and agencies—including the SEC, Peace Corps, and FCC—the legal shield does little to calm the anxieties of those already targeted. The ongoing threat of termination looms large, making it impossible for families to plan for the future.
This crisis is also degrading public services. At HUD, nearly all investigators for Fair Housing Act violations have received layoff notices, effectively halting civil rights enforcement. Meanwhile, the National Park Service struggles to maintain parks during its busiest season with a skeleton crew, leading to safety and environmental concerns. Experts warn this instability is sending a chilling message to the next generation of public servants, potentially driving away the nation’s top talent for good.