Trump Administration Moves to End Job Protections for Hundreds of US Health Department Workers

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Washington: The Trump administration has begun removing civil service protections from hundreds of senior employees in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), a move that could make it easier to dismiss career government staff. 

According to an internal email reviewed by Reuters, employees across several HHS agencies are being reclassified under a new employment category known as ‘Schedule Policy/Career’. The change would allow the government to fire affected workers without the protections and appeal rights traditionally granted to federal civil servants. The affected positions are mainly senior-level GS-15 employees, including policy advisers, managers, supervisors and technical experts. 

Officials said the first phase would impact ‘hundreds, not thousands’ of workers, although further rounds of reclassification are expected. The move forms part of a broader overhaul of the U.S. civil service system launched by President Donald Trump earlier this year. The administration says the changes are intended to make federal employees more accountable to elected leadership and to prevent career officials from obstructing presidential policies. 

Critics, including labour unions and governance experts, argue the policy threatens the independence of the federal workforce and could pave the way for politically motivated dismissals and wider staff reductions. Federal employee unions have already challenged the policy in court. An HHS official confirmed the authenticity of the email but said no additional large-scale layoffs were currently planned beyond those already announced.