Local federal workers react to Trump's new work policies: 'People were sobbing in the halls’

Anxiety is at a boiling point for much of D.C.’s federal workforce after President Donald Trump signed a flurry of executive orders meant to enact hiring freezes, end remote work, strip job protections, and terminate all hires related to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). 

Patrick Scurlock, a federal employee at the National Archives, says Wednesday was a catastrophe following announcements at several agencies of office closures and mandated reporting of anyone who continues to carry out work related to DEI.

“People were sobbing in the halls. It was upsetting to see,” he says, adding: “A ton of people who are friends with our people within my unit, were let go today as part of the DEI [dismantling].”

Scurlock fears he’ll be next. He has just three weeks until his probationary period ends, after which termination becomes – at least in theory – significantly more challenging. He’s not sure what this will mean for his future – he’s already struggling to manage D.C.’s high cost of living.

“If I am cast out into unemployment with no safety net or anything to help me get groceries and things like that – I don't want to say I'm struggling in the same way that other people are, but this place is expensive and I'm barely affording it," he says. "I'm not going to be able to anymore.”

The District could see an exodus of federal workers, adds Scurlock, saying he’s one of many who may “have to move back home.”

About 15 percent of the federal workforce lives in the D.C.-area, with 162,144 in the city itself as of last year. The concentration of federal jobs means that the political winds of the government can have big implications for the city – as a result of the five week partial government shutdown in 2019, for example, the D.C. government lost $47 million in revenue. Local industries, including restaurants and tourism, saw significant downturns as well.

The feasibility of Trump’s rapid fire and sweeping changes isn’t yet clear – several legal challenges aiming to stop them are already underway. In a city so closely intertwined with the federal government, however, the impact of the attempted changes – and the culture of fear accompanying them – is likely to be significant.

"I have colleagues at the Environmental Protection Agency that literally are panicking that their entire agency will be dissolved," says H.S., a federal worker who lives in D.C. and asked to only be identified by their initials for fear of professional consequences. "So we've actually absorbed a number of people at the Department of Agriculture from the EPA because they're so worried that their entire agency will disappear."

Another one of Trump’s executive orders rolls back a slew of Biden-era mandates meant to combat the climate crisis. During his last administration, he sought to slash the EPA’s budget and staff, efforts many of D.C.’s civil servants worry is a harbinger of what's to come. 

"It was pretty bad the last time this administration was in place, but I feel like they have a lessons learned sheet, and the people that they will put in place to lead the executive branch will understand how to play the game and really dismantle the federal workforce. That's where I'm really, literally scared I will not have a job in February," H.S. says.

The effort to strip job protections from tens of thousands of employees involved in policy-making has many worried Trump aims to clear the government of anyone who isn’t loyal to his agenda.

"You work on anything related to policy or regulation and you're now an at-will employee and we could be fired tomorrow," H.S. says.

In a largely progressive city like D.C., many civil servants fear that their personal beliefs or professional focus on issues like environmental or racial justice could put them in the administration's crosshairs. 

Trump’s return to office push is a rare – and controversial – area of alignment with Mayor Muriel Bowser, who has blamed the shift to remote and hybrid work for reducing the city’s tax revenue, reducing Metro ridership, and creating a stagnant downtown. 

But for many impacted workers, the potential changes are yet another thing that feels out of their control. 

Rose, an EPA employee who is only being identified by her middle name out of fear for her job, says her work has always been fully remote, and she isn’t even sure there’s room for everyone in person at their offices.

“That's the big problem, and that's what I'm hearing a lot of people talk about, is there really just isn't space for everyone to come back that much,” she says.

Rose says they’ve already been told a move to three days a week in person is likely, and a full return to office is possible – though, like all of these prospective changes, much remains uncertain.

“It seems like there's some wiggle room with the order for office heads to make decisions about these types of things,” she adds.

Union representatives at AFSCME Local 3976, tasked with advocating for federal workers focused on agriculture trade, worries that these policies could put even greater strain on an already overstretched workforce. 

"So our big concern right now is that we are short-staffed. Federal hiring is very difficult under any circumstances, and we have about 20% of our workforce that can retire today, and that number is only going up over the next four years," says Collin Bradley, the vice president of AFSCME Local 3976.

President of the union, Liliana Bachelder, worries about the long term impacts of losing hard to replace talent. 

"We can't just go to the corner and pick up somebody that understands ag[riculture], trade policy, that can do economic analysis," Bachelder says. "And these demoralizing talks of purges … have people looking at other opportunities out of fear."

John Marvel, an associate professor of public administration and policy at American University who studies the federal workforce, also worries about the impacts.

"A lot of these people really can't be replaced. Federal employees are highly skilled, many with advanced degrees, and losing them would undermine the government's ability to fulfill its mission," he says.

Bradley says that D.C.'s workers and their unions aren’t taking these changes lying down, saying that representatives are visiting Congressional offices to advocate for the workplace protections they’ve already won – which in AFSCME Local 3976’s case includes flexible telework policies.

Disruptions to their agreement can only be made through changes in law and court rulings, he says.

“If they do try these things, we are prepared to file grievances, unfair labor practices, or whatever it takes to protect the rights of our employees.”