HHS reinstated 328 CDC workers May 14, reversing a portion of the sweeping federal workforce layoffs, NBC News reported.
The employees are part of the CDC’s National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, which focuses on preventing and treating workplace-related illnesses. Their roles included screening coal miners for black lung disease and facilitating healthcare coverage for 9/11 first responders.
Approximately 100 of the reinstated employees work at a NIOSH facility in Morgantown, W.Va., and another 100 work at two facilities in Cincinnati.
As part of its broader restructuring efforts, the Trump administration had announced plans to lay off 1,300 NIOSH employees, with total layoffs across HHS estimated at 10,000. The administration has since said it will reverse about 20% of those layoffs.
On May 9, a federal judge in California temporarily halted those layoffs, citing concerns about executive overreach. In response, HHS said in a May 12 statement to Becker’s that its plan is legal, collaborative and aligned with civil service protections.
