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Thousands of federal workers are losing their jobs as part of the Trump administration's efforts to drastically downsize the government.

The sweeping cuts are being felt across areas and agencies, from to to . Staffers at some agencies say the notification process , leaving their employment status and teams' futures unclear.

To add to the confusion, some employees have received termination notices only to have their firings reversed within days or even hours.

This effort by the informal Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) — the cross-agency team tasked by President Trump to slash federal spending — is not the first to try to .

Nick Bednar, an associate professor of law at the University of Minnesota who specializes in executive branch politics, says that what makes this moment different is how quickly and indiscriminately the layoffs are happening.

"The way we've traditionally reduced the size of the federal workforce is to take a scalpel and kind of target particular programs where we think there might be bloat," he said. "This is more like taking a sledgehammer to the entire executive branch."

A number of agencies appear to be trying to reinstate employees they just fired. That's been the case for dozens of workers at agencies including the U.S. Department of Energy, the Department of Health and Human Services and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).

"Part of the problem is that a lot of these political appointees don't necessarily know what these programs are or what they're designed to do," Bednar says. "Things break almost immediately when these employees leave, and so you have to call them back."

Another contributing factor is likely political pressure from Congress, Bednar says, even if it's happening behind closed doors. The majority of the is located outside of Washington, D.C., and he's seen that many lawmakers are concerned about their constituents.

But even if agencies are able to reinstate some laid-off employees, they're not all guaranteed to come back. Bednar says the haphazard layoffs process has done "damage to the reputation of the federal government as an employer" that might leave longtime civil servants looking to the private sector instead.

"You don't feel comfortable or secure in your position if you're laid off one day and then told, 'Oh, never mind, we figured out you're actually an important part of our team,' " he adds. "And you're left wondering, 'Well, at what point will you decide that I'm no longer important?' "

He says it's also jarring for the broader public to watch this back and forth happen, especially since so many people don't have a nuanced understanding of how federal agencies work in the first place. The patchwork of terminations and reversals further "suggests something about mismanagement of government," he adds.

Billionaire Elon Musk, who effectively oversees DOGE, has defended the administration's work but acknowledged that it's imperfect.

"We are moving fast, so we will make mistakes, but we'll also fix the mistakes very quickly," he said .

Here's a look at some of the agencies involved.

Hundreds of Indian Health Service workers got their jobs back

Approximately 950 Indian Health Service (IHS) employees were told they would receive layoff notices last Friday, IHS Public Affairs Director Nicole Adams told NPR.

But their jobs were quickly saved after newly-confirmed Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. rescinded the layoffs via phone calls later that day, Adams confirmed.

In a statement shared with NPR, Kennedy said American Indians "suffer the highest level of of any demographic" and promised that "IHS will be a priority over the next four years."

"The Indian Health Service has always been treated as the redheaded stepchild at HHS," Kennedy said. "My father often complained that IHS was chronically understaffed and underfunded. President Trump wants me to rectify this sad history."

The National Indian Health Board, a nonprofit based in D.C., that while Kennedy's intervention is "something to celebrate," — including the Department of the Interior, the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Bureau of Indian Education — are still cause for concern.

"The services these organizations provide to Tribes are non-negotiable, and were secured by our ancestors through trusts and treaties," it wrote. "Tribes have long advocated for these programs, and these layoffs not only undermine the promises our ancestors made, but also put lives at risk."

Whiplash for nuclear weapons workers 

Last week wrought days of chaos at the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), a civilian agency within the Department of Energy that oversees the U.S. nuclear weapons stockpile.

After being told they would not get an exemption for national security purposes, officials were given hours to fire more than 100 employees. Workers were abruptly shut out of their government email accounts and told to clear out their desks on the spot, as .

NPR spoke to several employees who were involved in the NNSA terminations and rehirings. They asked to remain anonymous because they currently serve in the federal government and are not authorized to speak to the press.

Those who were fired spent Friday worrying about what to do next. "That mental game was horrible," says one NNSA employee who received a termination notice.

On Capitol Hill, , given the sensitive nature of the agency's work, which includes making safety and security upgrades to nuclear warheads, overseeing emergency response plans at nuclear storage facilities and trying to prevent terrorists from acquiring weapons-grade plutonium and uranium.

Behind the scenes, pressure built on Energy Secretary Chris Wright to reverse the terminations. By Saturday, many employees were rehired, without explanation.

"I think they were, like, 'Oopsie, let's just say you didn't work Friday,' " said another NNSA employee who watched the firing process unfold.

According to an NNSA statement sent to NPR on Sunday, fewer than 50 employees were ultimately dismissed. The employee who watched the firing process said the number of people permanently terminated was around half that number.

"I probably moved a little too quickly there," Wright . "When we made mistakes on layoffs at NNSA, we reversed them immediately — less than 24 hours."

For the dozens who were terminated and rehired, though, things have changed.

"When we lose people and people are on edge, they get disheartened," the fired and rehired employee told NPR, predicting that the work of the nuclear agency is likely to slow as a result.

A hydropower agency rescinds dozens of firings

Don Ryan / AP

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AP

The (BPA) — a nonprofit federal power marketing administration within the Department of Energy, headquartered in Portland, Oregon — is also reversing some job cuts.

Oregon Public Broadcasting reported that the 30 employees it fired last week, citing multiple sources familiar with the agency's operations. They asked not to be named out of fear of retaliation from the current administration.

BPA, one of four federal power marketing administrations in the country, distributes hydropower from 31 federal dams and operates 75% of the Northwest's power grid.

Some 130 of BPA's more than 3,000 employees were notified of their dismissal last week as part of the administration's downsizing push.

But 30 probationary workers were later brought back because, according to a senior official at BPA, they did "mission critical work" to manage power across the Pacific Northwest.

Even so, , the same official said: The 100 other probationary employees are still fired, another roughly 240 resigned in exchange for a buyout and 90 job offers were rescinded due to the administration's federal hiring freeze.

USDA moves to bring back its bird flu staff

Days after touting "an aggressive plan to optimize its workforce," the USDA confirmed it is trying to of an unspecified number of staffers who had been working on the federal government's response to the highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI).

"Although several positions supporting HPAI were notified of their terminations over the weekend, we are working to swiftly rectify the situation and rescind those letters," an agency official speaking on the condition of anonymity told NPR on Wednesday.

The widespread H5 bird flu has caused outbreaks in poultry and dairy cows, sending egg prices skyrocketing and infecting in the U.S.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention — which was also hit by layoffs — considers the current public health risk low, but continues to monitor its spread. The USDA says it will continue to prioritize its response to the outbreak.

"Several job categories, including veterinarians, animal health technicians, and other emergency response personnel have been exempted from the recent personnel actions to continue to support the HPAI response and other animal health priorities," the official added.

Uncertainty at the VA 

Al Drago / Bloomberg via Getty Images

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Bloomberg via Getty Images

The Department of Veterans Affairs of 1,000 employees last week, a move it said would save some $98 million annually. It said many of those laid off were probationary employees who were not covered by a collective bargaining agreement, while "mission-critical positions" were exempt.

Even so, the mass layoffs — at an agency already battling — prompted concerns from lawmakers on of the aisle, including many current and former members of the .

Ranking Member Mark Takano, D-Calif., said in a statement that the fired employees include "100% service-connected disabled veterans, military spouses, and critical medical researchers who have devoted their careers to improving veterans' lives."

"These dismissals will have far-reaching consequences — not only for the now-unemployed workers and their families but also for the quality of care our veterans receive," he added.

Some Democratic lawmakers have said publicly in recent days that the layoffs included employees who worked on the , a 24/7 support line for service members, veterans and their loved ones.

"DOGE needs to hear this: firing people — like USDA workers tracking bird flu and VA workers answering the Veterans Crisis Line — and then rehiring them is deeply inefficient," tweeted Rep. , D-Calif.

Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., on Wednesday that roughly a dozen of the VA employees laid off had worked on the Veterans Crisis Hotline, and at least two of those employees had since told her office they were being rehired.

VA press secretary Peter Kasperowicz told NPR on Thursday that no Veterans Crisis Line responders have been laid off, but did not elaborate on whether any had been fired and rehired.

This week, a group of 36 Democratic senators calling on the VA to reinstate all 1,000 employees and commit to no future "widespread terminations" without detailed justification and notifying Congress in advance.

NPR's Geoff Brumfiel contributed reporting.  

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