NOAA workers report 'intentional chaos' during personnel cuts

Source: NBC News

April 17, 2025, 1:07 PM EDT


Some workers at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration who were fired in February, rehired in March and then fired for a second time in April, say the agency has missed some salary payments during that period, and failed to have their health insurance plans restored or provide basic paperwork.

“I have described it as intentional chaos and weaponized incompetence,” said Kayla Besong, who did not receive one of her last paychecks after she was initially fired from her job as a physical scientist at the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center. Besong, who issued tsunami alerts as part of her job, was later rehired and then fired again. Another NOAA worker said she underwent a $70,000 surgery only to find out after the fact that she didn't have active insurance coverage.

The Department of Commerce and NOAA fired more than 600 probationary employees at the agency alone on Feb. 27, including hurricane hunters, meteorologists and storm modelers. In mid-March, judges ordered many of those workers to be reinstated and NOAA placed the workers on paid administrative leave instead. Last week, the Supreme Court paused some of the reinstatements and NOAA chose to fire the workers for a second time.

The agency’s limited communication with its personnel has prevented workers from receiving unemployment benefits and left some forced to pay out-of-pocket charges for health care that should have been covered while under the agency's employ, according to the Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER), a nonprofit organization that supports environmental workers. Tim Whitehouse, the executive director of PEER, said he'd talked to about a dozen NOAA workers seeking help and reporting a variety of human resources issues. Neither NOAA nor the Department of Commerce responded to an interview request and a request for comment from NBC News.

Read more: https://www.nbcnews.com/science/science-news/noaa-workers-report-intentional-chaos-personnel-cuts-rcna201625