Washington, DC — Hundreds of recently refired National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) employees have suffered significant financial and medical harm by haphazard and sloppy official handling of personnel issues, according to Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER). The lack of administrative diligence by NOAA and its parent agency, the Department of Commerce, has jeopardized these workers’ health insurance, unemployment insurance eligibility, and reemployment rights, among other concerns.

Yo-yoing between unemployment and reemployment, approximately 650 NOAA employees within their probationary period were fired en masse last February without cause by the Trump Administration, along with more than 15,000 probationary employees from other federal agencies. Two separate federal courts have found these mass removals to be illegal and ordered their reinstatement while the courts considered the cases. Accordingly, the employees were rehired.

More recently, appeals courts vacated those restoration orders, leaving the probationary employees in legal limbo until the underlying merits of the case are fully litigated.

Last week, many newly rehired NOAA staff were notified via a three-sentence letter from Commerce Acting General Counsel John Guenther that the agency “is reverting your termination action to its original effective date.” The Guenther letter was not addressed to specific recipients.  However, the unceremonious firings –

• Imperiled continued health insurance coverage. During the time period they were reinstated, employees’ paychecks included the usual deductions for health insurance premiums. Backdating the re-termination from April to February left those who received medical care or filled prescriptions during that time on the hook for care they reasonably believed to be covered. Furthermore, without any advance notice, employees could not switch to their partners’ health insurance because they could not show a qualifying life event. In addition, many insurance companies are questioning the authenticity of the termination email, which is so slipshod that it fails to name specific recipients and lacks the formal information that firing notices typically contain.
• Denied useful documentation. Many never received formal documentation of their firing, which the agency sent via email even though it had already cut off employees’ computer access, making unemployment claims difficult or impossible. In addition, unemployment insurance coverage is disallowed if fired “for cause” but Commerce used murky language about “failing” probation which masks the separation’s true basis.
• Put future reemployment at risk. Many state and private employers, as well as the federal government, ask if you have ever been dismissed for cause. The courts have found these mass firings were not performance-based, and most fired workers had excellent reviews from their managers, yet there is no supporting paperwork for this.

“The lack of basic class, courtesy, and consideration in how these probationary employees have been treated is just appalling,” remarked PEER Executive Director Tim Whitehouse who today sent a letter to Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick requesting that he take steps to resolve these problems. “These people were removed through no fault of their own but would have been better off had they been laid off.”

Those who have been rehired also face complications of receiving the proper amount of back pay, insurance premium payments, sick days, and other benefits. In addition, there are several employees who passed their probationary period but whose employment status remains unclear.

“Every worker who performs well in their job should be treated with dignity and respect, whether they work for a government agency or the private sector,” added Whitehouse. “These probationary employees represent the next generation of public service who should be cultivated, not cavalierly cast aside.”

###

Read PEER protest letter to Commerce Secretary

See the terse letter re-terminating employees