Here are the agencies purging federal workers
In the latest federal shakeup, the Trump administration ordered the heads of several agencies across the government to start firing employees who were still within their probationary period — or within their first one or two years on the job.
During this period, which is different for each agency, workers have some protections in place, but their weak standing puts them in a position that is easier to terminate. The directive, issued earlier this week, could impact more than 200,000 federal employees.
Still, those who are ousted have the ability to appeal their case to the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB), an independent agency tasked with protecting federal workers and ensuring the firings didn’t occur for political reasons.
The moves come as President Trump's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), led by tech billionaire Elon Musk, have exacerbated their efforts to cut down on government spending — in some cases looking to dismantle whole agencies or departments.
Here are the agencies that have begun purging federal workers.
The U.S. Department of the Interior building is seen in Washington on Dec. 7, 2024 (The Hill/Greg Nash).
Interior Department
The Interior Department fired some 2,300 employees following the orders from the Office of Personnel Management (OPM).
An internal message reviewed by The Hill on Friday indicates that the employees were on probationary status — meaning they started relatively recently.
The department has a broad mandate, overseeing national parks, tribal affairs, endangered species and conservation of and energy production on federally owned lands and in federal waters.
Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, the former governor of North Dakota and an ex-GOP presidential candidate, was confirmed to lead the agency earlier this month.
FILE - A seal is displayed on the front of the Veterans Affairs Department building in Washington on June 21, 2013. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak, File)
Department of Veterans Affairs
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), led by newly minted Secretary Doug Collins (R-Ga.), has dismissed more than 1,000 new employees as part of a wave of federal government layoffs that began this week, sparking concerns the firings could impact benefits for former service members.
Those ousted included non-mission-critical probationary employees who have all served less than two years, according to a VA statement released late Thursday.
The department argued that the layoffs will save the agency more than $98 million per year, with resources redirected back toward health care, benefits and services for VA beneficiaries.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Building is shown in Washington, Sept. 21, 2017. (Greg Nash/The Hill).
Environmental Protection Agency
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) dismissed almost 400 workers after receiving the OPM directive.
The EPA, led by former Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-N.Y.) after he was confirmed last week, told The Hill on Friday that it “terminated” 388 probationary employees, explaining that the firings came “after a thorough review of agency functions in accordance with President Trump’s executive orders.”
The move comes nearly a week after the agency put more than 160 workers from the Office of Environmental Justice on leave. Those employees were tasked with tackling pollution in overburdened communities.
The seal for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (HHS via Getty Images)
Health and Human Services
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) will be laying off nearly all 5,200 probationary employees, multiple outlets reported on Friday, but some workers with specialized skills could still serve.
As a result, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) could lose up to 1,300 or around one-tenth of its personnel.
Two key staff members at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) are also reportedly leaving the agency amid ongoing efforts by the Trump administration to drastically cut down the size of the federal agency.
Environmental lawyer and former independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was confirmed by the Senate to lead HHS earlier this week, despite reservations over his past stance on abortion and anti-vaccine rhetoric.
A Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) logo is seen in the lobby of their building in Washington, D.C., on Monday, February 10, 2025. (Greg Nash/The Hill)
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
More than 100 employees were fired at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) in the wake of the OPM directive, according to news reports. The employees who were let go were largely on probationary status.
Jonathan McKernan was recently tapped to chair the bureau and replace acting director Russell Vought, who also serves as director of the Office of Management and Budget. Vought had ordered employees to halt all work and announced he would not take the agency’s last drawdown from the Federal Reserve.
However, on Friday, a federal judge blocked the administration from firing workers at the finance bureau without cause or issuing any reduction-in-force notice — part of an agreement reached between the Department of Justice and the National Treasury Employees Union, which is suing alongside other groups over the changes to the agency.
They also cannot delete or remove CFPB data or transfer or return any of the agency’s funds, according to the order signed by U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson.
Firefighters with the U.S. Forest Service gather Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2025, in Altadena, Calif. (AP Photo/John Locher)
U.S. Department of Agriculture
The U.S. Forest Service, housed under the Agriculture Department (USDA), fired over 2,400 employees, multiple news outlets reported, impacting around 10 percent of the agency’s workforce.
The agency manages nearly 200 million acres of land, or about the size of Texas.
The cuts come less than a week after the Senate overwhelmingly confirmed Brooke Rollins to lead USDA, as the chamber kept up its intense pace to confirm Trump's Cabinet picks.
A sign for the U.S. Department of Education is seen on a building. (Getty Images)
Department of Education
The Education Department — one of several agencies the DOGE has considered abolishing — fired a minimum of 30 workers after OPM's directive.
The layoffs come just days after the Education Department's research arm, the Institute of Education Sciences, was moved to cancel more than 160 contracts due to funding cuts.
While the department has been the latest target, Trump’s pick for Education secretary, Linda McMahon, had her confirmation hearing Thursday, vowing to work with Congress to end the department. She said that essential programs that operate at the department should move to different parts of the federal government.
An executive order issued by the White House earlier this month also placed dozens of employees on administrative leave due to the president's efforts to cut down on diversity, equity and inclusion programs across the federal government.
The U.S. Small Business Administration logo is shown on the agency website on Tuesday, June 25, 2024 in New York. (AP Photo/Peter Morgan)
Small Business Administration
Following Trump’s executive order Tuesday, more than 100 Small Business Administration (SBA) employees, who are considered on probationary status, reportedly received termination notices.
Those came after they received similar notices last week, which were in error until the president’s executive order extended DOGE’s authority to fire workers.
Another ally of the president faced confirmation hearings earlier this week, just to have the department potentially be slashed — SBA hopeful Kelly Loeffler is set to be confirmed the lead the agency soon.
Rebecca Beitsch, Alex Gangitano and Steff Danielle Thomas contributed.
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