The latest round of sweeping layoffs within the Health and Human Services Department is affecting all the workers in the division responsible for certifying personal protective equipment that healthcare providers use, union officials confirmed.
HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced plans last week to cut the department's overall staffing numbers from 82,000 to 62,000, targeting the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Food and Drug Administration, the National Institutes of Health and other agencies within HHS.
Related: HHS begins mass layoffs as RFK Jr. orders 10,000 jobs cut
Workers and union officials from the American Federation of Government Employees learned of the latest cuts in letters sent Monday by HHS Chief Human Capital Officer Thomas Nagy Jr. The reduction in force, or RIF, will affect the CDC's National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health. A unit of NIOSH where union officials confirmed all the employees are being let go is the National Personal Protective Technology Laboratory, or NPPTL.
The unit is responsible for ensuring that N95 respirators and other breathing safety equipment work the way they are supposed to, and maintains a certified equipment list so that healthcare buyers can be sure their supplies make the grade.
The layoffs will take effect on June 30, according to American Federation of Government Employees union representatives and one of the letters sent by Nagy. Union officials said supervisors are being put on administrative leave Tuesday.
"Everybody in NPPTL is being RIF'ed," said Brendan Demich, chief steward of the AFGE Local 1916 based in Pittsburgh, which covers mining safety workers as well as the lab.
Exactly what will happen to the responsibilities of the lab was unclear. None of the letters warning of the reductions included any instructions on handing off the work. With supervisors already going on leave, it was unclear how or whether that might be organized.
"We have been given no guidance on how to offload it," Domenich said. "All these people are dedicated public servants. They're still trying to figure out, how can I pass off their critical information on their contracts to whoever needs it. But I don't think there is any intention to keep the laboratory open in any in any facet."
It's not clear what the elimination of the lab would mean for healthcare providers who are already concerned about changes at HHS. Other countries also certify the quality of protective equipment.
A spokesperson for HHS did not respond to a request for comment.
