EPA Staff Threatened with Mass Layoffs

On February 3, 2025, the New York Times reported that the Trump administration informed over 1,100 Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) employees working on climate change, air pollution, and other environmental issues that “they could be fired at any time.”

The news was sent via email to employees who were hired within the last year and are on probationary status. This probationary status allows the agency “to immediately terminate” those staff members. A number of other agencies are also being considered for mass lay-offs, but EPA is reportedly the first to distribute such email notifications.

Update: On February 6, 2025, nearly 170 employees at the EPA's Office of Environmental Justice and External Civil Rights (OEJECR) were placed on administrative leave. The affected employees worked to address historic and current harms to disadvantaged and minority communities, which are disproportionately impacted by pollution.

OEJECR, which had approximately 200 employees in 2024, oversees more than $3 billion in grants and loans to address environmental and climate risks. According to Matthew Tejada, former deputy assistant administrator for OEJECR during the Biden administration, the move to remove staff  "leaves the environmental justice program at EPA on life support."

Update: On April 21, 2025, more than 450 EPA employees who worked on environmental justice and “diversity, equity, and inclusion” (DEI) were informed that they would be fired or reassigned. Those being fired will lose their jobs on July 31, 2025, and those whose duties are required by law will be reassigned to other offices on June 29, 2025.