Those let go include meteorologists who do crucial local forecasts in National Weather Service offices across the country.
In Washington, lawmakers and weather experts mentioned that on Thursday, a significant number of probationary federal employees from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) were dismissed.
Among those affected by the layoffs were meteorologists responsible for providing essential local forecasts in various National Weather Service offices nationwide, as reported by federal workers who retained their positions.
The layoffs at NOAA seemed to be occurring in two separate phases, with approximately 500 employees being let go in one round and another 800 in a subsequent round, according to Craig McLean, a former chief scientist at NOAA who received this information firsthand. This translates to roughly 10% of NOAA’s total workforce being impacted by these job cuts.
The first round of cuts were probationary employees, McLean said. There are about 375 probationary employees in the National Weather Service — where day-to-day forecasting and hazard warning is done.
The firings come amid efforts by billionaire Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency to shrink a federal workforce that President Donald Trump has called bloated and sloppy. Thousands of probationary employees across the government have already been fired.
Rep. Grace Meng, D-N.Y., released a statement saying: “Today, hundreds of employees at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), including weather forecasters at the National Weather Service (NWS), were given termination notices for no good reason. This is unconscionable.”
Meng added: “These are dedicated, hardworking Americans whose efforts help save lives and property from the devastating impacts of natural disasters across the country. This action will only endanger American lives going forward.”
Some labs and offices announced Thursday they wouldn’t be able to conduct some forms of research or activities due to the decreased staffing.
Rep. Jared Huffman, a California Democrat who is the ranking minority member in the House Natural Resources Committee, also said “hundreds of scientists and experts at NOAA” were let go.
Daniel Swain, a climate scientist at the University of California, Los Angeles, said on social media that the job cuts “are spectacularly short-sighted, and ultimately will deal a major self-inflicted wound to the public safety of Americans and the resiliency of the American economy to weather and climate-related disasters.”
