WASHINGTON — USDA employees working on the department’s avian influenza response recently discovered they were facing job terminations. Now, the agency is offering them their positions back.
The layoffs began on Feb. 15, with rescinded offers being made the following week.
In a statement provided to Poultry Times on Feb. 21, a USDA spokesperson said, “Although several positions supporting HPAI were notified of their terminations over the weekend, we are working swiftly to rectify the situation and rescind those letters.”
“USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service frontline positions are considered public safety positions, and we are continuing to hire the workforce necessary to ensure the safety and adequate supply of food to fulfill our statutory mission,” the spokesperson’s statement continued.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. as of Feb. 21, more than 160 million poultry have been affected since the current bird flu outbreak was first detected in the U.S. in 2022. During the past few months, due to ongoing infections, egg prices have spiked, stores have begun limiting egg purchases, and even some restaurants like, Waffle House, have imposed a surcharge on eggs.
“(USDA) employees support farmers and ranchers, invest in rural communities, prevent wildfires, protect our natural resources, and more,” U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), ranking member of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry, said in a Feb. 16 statement. “It is one thing to institute reforms. It is another to mandate across-the-board layoffs that stop or delay work on avian flu, wildfires, rural hospitals, and loans for farmers and ranchers. This will hurt U.S. agriculture and rural Americans just when our farmers are getting hit by animal disease, the threat of Trump tariffs, and no updated Farm Bill.”
“USDA continues to prioritize the response to highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI),” the USDA spokesperson’s statement added. “Several job categories, including veterinarians, animal health technicians, and other emergency response personnel have been exempted from the recent personnel actions to continue to support the HPAI response and other animal health priorities.”
