The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health is the latest agency to rehire employees hastily let go in the name of government efficiency. President Donald Trump created the Department of Government Efficiency with the goal of reducing the federal workforce by 10%.
In this latest case, NIOSH employees in charge of the Coal Workers’ Health Surveillance Program and Fire Fighter Fatality Investigation and Prevention are back on the job. However, they remain on the “reduction in force” list and will only work until June 2. They are in charge of research, outreach, and intervention regarding workplace injuries and harm.
Most of NIOSH’s 1,000-person workforce was laid off. Its union, American Federation of Government Employees Local 3430, celebrated that “vital initiatives” were reinstated but suggested in a press release that the Trump administration chose to rehire positions “currently in the media spotlight.” The release outlined how reinstating the entire workforce could result in cost savings across disability payments from Social Security, insurance claims, and healthcare.
Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) lobbied HHS to rehire people in positions specifically for the coal industry to benefit her constituents in Morgantown. The agency had its own office there.
“NIOSH is not just a research institution — it is a public health and economic engine,” AFGE Local 3430 President Cathy Tinney-Zara said. “Again, we commend Senator Capito for recognizing the immense value of NIOSH and the urgent need to preserve its operations. The American workforce depends on it.”
Capito also said she was “encouraged” by the news.
“But my understanding is that this is temporary, so my focus will continue to be on working with @HHSGov on permanently restoring these functions and personnel in the most efficient and effective manner,” Capito wrote on X Tuesday.
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Earlier this month, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. admitted that “mistakes” were made in the mass layoffs of human resources, finance, procurement, and information technology staff. Kennedy estimated that some 20% would be reinstated.
Other federal agencies have also opted to rehire employees, including the U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Nuclear Security Administration, Food and Drug Administration, Indian Health Service, and Bonneville Power Administration. The agencies rehired only a portion of the laid-off staff.
