Mass US government infrastructure services layoffs as Trump and Musk begin ‘efficiency’ purge

Upon signing a new executive order, Trump called on government department heads to prepare for “large-scale reductions in force” as well as finding ways to eliminate or combine positions.

As many as 200,000 workers have been reported to be affected by the mass terminations.

Tech billionaire Elon Musk led the government layoffs, enacting his planned government transformation by the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency (Doge), which he leads.

Musk said: “I think we do need to delete entire agencies as opposed to leave a lot of them behind. If we don’t remove the roots of the weed, then it’s easy for the weed to grow back.”

Probation

The Trump administration has focused its “efficiency” efforts on workers that are currently on their probation.

One of the many bodies that was affected, the Department of Energy, lost around 1,000 federal workers all on their probation.

Over 300 of those workers were said to be employed within the National Nuclear Security Administration’s (NNSA’s) workforce of 1,800. However, department officials contended this saying the number was roughly 50 that were laid off.

Reports then suggested a number of the fired staff members at the NNSA were recalled to their jobs a day later. This is because they worked in critical roles related to nuclear weapons, including within the facilities that build them.

Hundreds of employees also lost their jobs at the Bonneville Power Administration and the Western Area Power Administration. These organisations manage a large part of electricity grid that covers the west coast of the US.

One fired employee from the Department of Energy took to the internet to discuss how her job in the grid deployment office was cut in the “public interest”.

Lisa W said: “I have served in the federal government under Democrat and Republican presidents and did my job faithfully as I swore an oath to do. But never have I been subject to intimidation, slander and the hostile conditions I and my colleagues experienced the last few weeks. In all my prior years of service, I’ve never been asked to be ‘loyal’ to a person, party, or administration.

“Our loyalty is to the constitution and the people of this country. But I fear that we are veering away from this as our government is being stripped of nonpartisan career civil servants to eventually be replaced by partisan hires of dubious qualifications.

“Yesterday, our office and the department experienced the termination of thousands of brilliant, dedicated public servants and subject matter experts,” Lisa W said.

“All of which is baffling after a recent executive order declaring an energy emergency.

“Also, in his inaugural remarks, the energy secretary described how energy infrastructure is central to our ability to live our daily lives and therefore should not be politicized.

“It would seem in light of all this that our continued employment would absolutely be in the public interest. Unless, of course, this is just politics.”

Another department that was heavily affected was the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

Confirming to NCE, a spokesperson said: “EPA has terminated 388 probationary employees after a thorough review of agency functions in accordance with President Trump’s executive orders.

“EPA has followed standard protocols and procedures, ensuring impacted staff received notification of their status.

“President Trump was elected with a mandate to create a more effective and efficient federal government that serves all Americans, and we are doing just that.”

More than 3,400 employees were also fired from the US Forest Service, as well as many other departments not concerned with infrastructure.

Union response

Unions representing the employees have spoken out against the mass layoffs, deeming the terminations “illegal”.

American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) national president Everett Kelley said: “This administration has abused the probationary period to conduct a politically driven mass firing spree, targeting employees not because of performance, but because they were hired before Trump took office.

“These firings are not about poor performance – there is no evidence these employees were anything but dedicated public servants. They are about power. They are about gutting the federal government, silencing workers, and forcing agencies into submission to a radical agenda that prioritizes cronyism over competence.

“Employees were given no notice, no due process, and no opportunity to defend themselves in a blatant violation of the principles of fairness and merit that are supposed to govern federal employment.

“Agencies have spent years recruiting and developing the next generation of public servants. By firing them en masse, this administration is throwing away the very talent that agencies need to function effectively in the years ahead.

“AFGE will fight these firings every step of the way. We will stand with every impacted employee, pursue every legal challenge available and hold this administration accountable for its reckless actions. Federal employees are not disposable, and we will not allow the government to treat them as such.”

National Federation of Federal Employees president Randy Erwin reiterated Kelley’s points, stating that Trump’s actions were against the law.

“The Trump Administration’s executive actions to gut the federal workforce are not only illegal, but will also have damaging consequences for federal employees and the public services they provide,” he said.

“The courts must intervene and hold this administration accountable for violating federal laws before it is too late.

“Federal workers are your friends and neighbours who have dedicated their careers to serving our country. We cannot let the president disrupt their lives and dismantle critical services relied upon by the American people.”

Additionally, Trump recently vowed to investigate California High Speed Rail deeming it the “worst managed project” he’s ever seen.

NCE also looked into what Trump’s presidency could look like for infrastructure.

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