UJ
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Over the weekend, Trump administration officials rushed to address a significant backlash after the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) dismissed numerous employees on Thursday evening, according to four sources familiar with the situation who spoke to UJ.
Originally, more than 300 staff were let go from the agency responsible for managing the United States’ nuclear arsenal. However, as per two current NNSA employees, nearly all of them have since been reinstated, leaving only about 25 remaining terminated. It’s still unclear how many will return to work on Tuesday.
The rapid firings caused disorder within the agency. After several Congress members urged Energy Secretary Chris Wright to reconsider the terminations, officials reevaluated their decisions on Friday due to the severe implications for national security.
Many of those initially terminated were NNSA personnel involved in the production of nuclear weapons, management of contractors working on them, and conducting inspections of these arms.
A significant number of the impacted workers held a “Q” security clearance granted by the Energy Department, granting them access to sensitive nuclear weapons designs and systems. This included staff from NNSA headquarters responsible for drafting the requirements and guidelines for nuclear weapons contractors.
Notably, the agency’s human resources department played no part in the firings, which is highly uncommon according to a person familiar with the dismissals. This left managers scrambling to locate the personal contact information of the affected employees to reassure them about their job status—a significant logistical challenge since government emails and phones were disabled.
“That’s not standard procedure,” an NNSA employee involved with the firings remarked to UJ. “It was absurd, extraordinary, and poorly handled. There is no established protocol.”
One NNSA employee who was among those fired and subsequently reinstated recounted how HR had not been involved. They noted that access to their government email and personnel records was cut off on Thursday night before they were notified of their termination.
“I didn’t believe I would be let go until it actually occurred,” the employee explained, adding that initially, the NNSA workforce thought they would be spared from the executive orders and communications that aimed to reduce the overall federal workforce.
Those communications “included a national security exemption, and we assumed that given that the NNSA has national security in its title, it would be exempt as well,” the employee asserted.
Executing the terminations just ahead of a long holiday weekend also delayed the process of officially informing individuals about their reinstatement and returning them to the system, a knowledgeable person told UJ.
A Department of Energy spokesperson did not provide answers to UJ’s queries about how many NNSA team members had been notified of their return or whether there were difficulties reaching those former employees. The spokesperson insisted on Friday that “fewer than 50 people” had been “dismissed” from the NNSA, primarily holding administrative and clerical roles, disputing the claim that over 300 were affected.
NNSA managers received a list of the dismissed employees who needed to be brought back into the fold after 6 p.m. Friday, from what one person reported, and officials worked through the weekend to reach out to those who had been let go.
Emails were dispatched to personal accounts containing a memo that read: “This letter serves as formal notification that the termination decision issued on February 13th, 2025, has been rescinded immediately. Consequently, your employment with the NNSA is reinstated, and you are expected to return to your assigned duties.”
The dismissal of such a significant number of personnel vital to the national security and global nuclear security highlights how the administration is aggressively pursuing its aim to downsize the federal government without fully comprehending the repercussions.
While there is currently no solid evidence suggesting that the NNSA’s overall mission has been jeopardized due to the administration’s dismissals, some within the agency express concern about the potential long-term effects.
“The principal impact was a blow to the morale and trust of the staff who were let go,” one source remarked.
Some employees may return to their roles, but the prevailing uncertainty around job security in an administration dedicated to reducing the federal workforce may drive some individuals to seek opportunities in the private sector, the source added.
“These individuals who have been recalled are worried: does this mean they could be part of future layoffs?” another source expressed. “Will they be the next to go?”
Additional concerns are emerging: some within the agency fear potential incursions by Elon Musk’s DOGE into the NNSA’s highly classified endeavors.
“What should I do if someone lacking the necessary clearance comes in and requests access to a file on Ukraine or warhead design?” an NNSA employee questioned. “The dilemma of either handing over sensitive or classified information or risking my job is alarming, and people feel the provided answers are insufficient.”
Others harbor fears about potential retaliation from the administration and political appointees within the agency, worried they could be targeted for embarrassing the “vengeful” president, a separate source indicated.
The Trump administration’s initiative to reclassify various non-political employee roles into presidentially appointed positions raises significant concern, particularly at the NNSA, where nuclear safety and security have historically been maintained without political interference, according to an insider from the Department of Energy.
The NNSA relies heavily on non-political staff to ensure stability and continuity through varying administrations while overseeing the nuclear arsenal. Should senior personnel be replaced with political appointments, international counterparts might view this lack of consistency as a sign of instability, a source affirmed to UJ.
“The world may start losing confidence in the U.S. as a dependable nuclear power,” the individual indicated, warning that a reduction in American influence or leadership in this domain could lead to the unintended spread of nuclear technology.
