Sources from multiple federal health officials informed CBS News that a significant restructuring mandated by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is expected to lead to the layoff of at least two-thirds of the staff at the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH).
Approximately 873 positions will be eliminated from NIOSH as part of a larger plan that aims to reduce 10,000 jobs across the Department of Health and Human Services this year, according to recent communications from agency leaders.
Established by Congress in 1970, NIOSH focuses on researching worker safety and health. The agency is often consulted by workplaces to investigate incidents such as the recent deadly fungal outbreak that forced the closure of a Michigan paper mill in 2023.
Officials have indicated that several new “health hazard evaluation” investigations by NIOSH have been halted for weeks due to travel and communication restrictions set by the Trump administration upon taking office.
Staff at the agency’s Pittsburgh and Spokane offices are particularly concerned about the impending cuts; approximately 200 out of the majority of employees working in these locations are expected to be affected, as indicated in a notice shared with their union.
The notice also highlighted that entire teams, including the office of NIOSH’s director and the National Personal Protective Technology Laboratory—which certifies and approves N95 respirators among other PPE—are expected to see all employees impacted. Additional teams focusing on miner safety and health will also be affected.
The “probable effective date” for these layoffs is set for June 30, according to the correspondence sent to the union. (Refer to the complete letter below.)
AFGE 1916 President Lilas Soukup confirmed on Monday that the union had received the notification from HHS, but emphasized that detailed guidance regarding the layoffs has been sparse.
As of now, HHS has not replied to inquiries seeking comments about the anticipated job cuts.
Federal health officials have noted that official notifications regarding the layoffs have not yet reached employees, including those at NIOSH.
While managers from various HHS agencies were instructed last week to expect notifications by email as early as Friday, staff across several health agencies reported that no such notices were received by the end of business on Monday.
Many managers expressed frustration, stating they have been left in the dark about the specifics of the cuts and have had limited opportunities to provide feedback.
Currently, NIOSH operates under the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and oversees numerous congressionally authorized programs that will likely be affected, including a national registry focused on cancer rates in firefighters and a program designed to monitor and treat individuals who fell ill during the response to the September 11th terror attacks.
The reorganization plan introduced by Kennedy last week proposes merging the downsized NIOSH into a new Administration for a Healthy America, which will include several other agencies like the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.
Additional offices slated for consolidation into AHA have also been cautioned about potential severe reductions, including the Office of Infectious Disease and HIV/AIDS Policy.
Other changes at the CDC
Officials from the Trump administration are pushing for a swift execution of the restructuring, instructing career staff to develop plans to implement Kennedy’s changes within weeks.
Various offices are anticipated to merge into the CDC as part of this reorganization, which will encompass teams from the department’s global affairs and most of the Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response (ASPR).
ASPR is responsible for managing the nation’s stocks of vaccines, medications, and personal protective equipment, as well as running multiple emergency preparedness and response initiatives, including the medical teams sent out to handle disasters.
As indicated in internal plans shared with CBS News by several health officials, ASPR’s Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) is expected to be detached and reassigned elsewhere.
BARDA has financed multiple pandemic preparedness projects, including studies on experimental COVID-19 vaccines and treatments. Past funding led to the development of vaccines and treatments effectively used to address other outbreaks, such as mpox in 2022.
At least one study related to an oral COVID-19 vaccine by Vaxart has been put on hold by the Trump administration.
Officials believe that BARDA will likely be merged with the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H), another medical research organization.
Read the notification letter sent from HHS to the union regarding the job cuts:
