By MES Dispatch staff
The Briefing
- • The Department of Health and Human Services has rescinded layoffs affecting hundreds of workers at the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), restoring staff who were previously terminated.
- • The reinstatements follow widespread criticism from labor groups, industry stakeholders and lawmakers about deep cuts to the workplace safety agency.
- • NIOSH conducts research and provides guidance on occupational health and safety issues, including miner safety, firefighter health, and other workplace hazards.
- • Officials said notices revoking all previous reduction‑in‑force actions were sent to affected employees, though some may have taken other jobs or retired.
WASHINGTON — Federal health officials have reinstated hundreds of researchers and other staff at the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, reversing layoffs that had affected nearly the entire workforce of the federal workplace safety research agency.
Gene J. Puskar/AP
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued notices this week revoking all reduction‑in‑force actions previously sent to NIOSH employees, effectively restoring their positions and allowing them to return to work.
NIOSH, which operates under the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, focuses on research and recommendations to prevent work‑related injuries, illnesses and deaths, including programs related to mining safety, chemical hazard assessment and other occupational health priorities.
The move follows intense criticism from labor unions, industry groups representing firefighters, miners and other stakeholders, and members of Congress, who argued that deep staffing cuts compromised critical safety research and worker protections.
While notices to rescind layoffs have been issued, officials acknowledged that some employees may have retired or accepted other positions since their termination, affecting the timeline for fully restoring the agency’s workforce and programs.