United States president Donald Trump’s government on Thursday informed around 600 of probationary employees responsible for producing critical weather forecasts, maintaining radar systems, gathering data from satellites and monitoring key commercial fisheries that they were sacked.
Termination letters were sent to staff in offices across the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, NOAA.
The move comes as part of the Trump government’s ongoing efforts to scale down federal agencies, including those responsible for weather and climate research.
Reports suggest that the layoffs could extend to over 800 workers out of the agency’s 13,000 staff.
More job cuts are expected to continue, with more layoffs planned for Friday.
This marks a challenging time for NOAA and its employees amid broader government downsizing initiatives.
Meanwhile a federal judge, William Alsup, had ordered the Trump government to reverse directives for mass firings of government workers, ruling they may be illegal.