Federal Firefighter Safety Workers Reinstated for Now
Employees working in coal mining and firefighter safety who had been slated for termination have been asked to return to work, according to a U.S. senator and a union that represents them.
The workers are employed by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), which is part of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). As part of an HHS overhaul, hundreds of NIOSH employees were placed on administrative leave and set to be fired, union officials say.
Employees who work for the Coal Workers' Health Surveillance Program and the Fire Fighters' Fatality Investigation and Prevention Program are being reinstated temporarily, the American Federation of Government Employees Local 3430
The exact number of affected workers is unclear.
The workers are still on the list to be fired as part of mass terminations scheduled for June 2, the union said.
Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), who has been in conversations with Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. about reversing some of the cuts, also said she understood the reinstatements to be temporary.
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'I am encouraged that some NIOSH functions for coal miner and firefighter safety are slated to resume with some select staff returning to work this week. But my understanding is that this is temporary, so my focus will continue to be on working with HHS on permanently restoring these functions and personnel in the most efficient and effective manner,' Capito
HHS did not respond to a request for comment.
Kennedy
A West Virginia coal miner who sued the government in federal court over the cuts
The government has not yet responded to the legal action. A judge ordered the government to respond by May 2 and to appear in court on May 7.
Kennedy
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