The Commerce Department is rehiring probationary NOAA employees fired by the Trump administration in February, according to a reinstatement letter widely shared by fired employees Monday.
The letter from Commerce acting General Counsel John K. Guenther says the recipient employees will “be reinstated to the federal service and your previous position of record retroactive to the effective date of your termination” pending the outcome of ongoing litigation over the legality of the mass terminations.
The employees will receive back pay from the date they were dismissed, but will remain on administrative leave until the litigation is settled, the letter said.
It is unclear how many federal employees received the letter, which was first reported to POLITICO’s E&E News by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, which is advising more than 120 terminated staffers.
