NIOSH workers reinstated after mass layoffs gutted federal workplace safety agency

Federal health officials confirmed Wednesday that laid-off workers at the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health are being reinstated, months after the Trump administration eliminated close to 900 of the agency’s roughly 1,000 employees. The American Federation of Government Employees, which represents NIOSH staff, said all terminations have been rescinded. A Department of Health and Human Services spokesman confirmed the reinstatements but did not say how many workers would return.

The reversal ends one of the most sweeping workforce reductions at a federal health agency under President Donald Trump’s government-downsizing campaign, though it remains unclear how many of the dismissed researchers, scientists and engineers have since taken other jobs or retired and will not be coming back.

Background

NIOSH, housed within the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, employs scientists, engineers and other specialists who research ways to prevent work-related injury, illness, disability and death. In April 2025, the Trump administration eliminated close to 900 of the agency’s roughly 1,000 positions as part of the federal workforce reduction led by then-adviser Elon Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency.

The layoffs drew opposition from firefighters, coal miners, medical equipment manufacturers and a range of other stakeholders. Some employees were brought back in 2025 amid legal challenges and political pressure, including those who staffed a health monitoring program for miners in West Virginia.

Official response

HHS spokesman Andrew Nixon confirmed on Wednesday that the reinstatements were underway.

“The Trump Administration is committed to protecting essential services — whether it’s supporting coal miners and firefighters through NIOSH, safeguarding public health through lead prevention, or researching and tracking the most prevalent communicable diseases,” Nixon said in a statement.

Nixon did not respond to questions about how many workers were being reinstated, why they were originally laid off, or why HHS decided to reverse course, according to the Associated Press.

Union reaction

Everett Kelley, national president of the American Federation of Government Employees, called the original dismissals unlawful.

“The administration’s attempt to lay off nearly every NIOSH worker was shameful and illegal, considering that much of NIOSH’s work is required by law,” Kelley said in a statement.

Uncertain return

Officials said it is unclear how many of the laid-off workers have since found other employment or retired. Attorney Michael Barasch, who represents 9/11 survivors and their families and has helped clients enroll in the NIOSH World Trade Center Health Program, said it is likely that many have moved on and will not return.

Barasch described the original layoffs and their consequences as “horrifying.” He said the cuts delayed diagnosis and treatment for program participants and that it is likely that “people died because of these cuts.”

Broader CDC workforce context

The NIOSH reinstatements come against a backdrop of continued staffing reductions across the broader CDC. At the end of 2025, the agency had approximately 10,800 full-time workers — about 20 percent fewer than before the April 2025 layoffs began, according to the CDC.