Park Service Loses Over 10% of Workforce Under Trump Administration
More than 2,400 National Park Service employees have left their jobs after accepting resignation or retirement offers from the Trump administration. This represents about 12.5% of the entire agency workforce, according to the National Parks Conservation Association.
The departures came through two main programs: a ‘fork in the road’ option allowing employees to resign while remaining on payroll until the fiscal year’s end, and an early retirement buyout package.
Among those leaving were high-ranking officials who led the Park Service’s cultural and natural resources divisions, writes the National Parks Traveler.
Worst fear coming true
“This is what we were most worried about”, said Kristen Brengel, NPCA’s senior vice president for government affairs. “This is our worst fear coming true, that you’re going to lose very knowledgeable people who know how to protect natural and cultural resources.”
Since taking office in January, President Trump has worked with businessman Elon Musk to reduce the size of the federal government. The administration initially canceled seasonal position offers and fired around 1,000 probationary employees on Valentine’s Day, though these actions were later reversed.
Early retirement packages
According to NPCA’s tracking, about 1,100 employees accepted the latest ‘fork in the road’ offer that expired Wednesday at midnight. Another 700 took a similar offer in February, and approximately 700 more accepted early retirement packages.
Division heads reportedly leaving the agency included those responsible for Air Resources, Water Resources, Climate Change Response, Natural Sounds and Night Skies, Inventory and Monitoring, Environmental Quality, Geological Resources, and National Natural Landmarks.
The National Parks Traveler also reports that Park Service IT staff is being moved to the Interior Department this weekend as part of a consolidation mentioned by Interior Secretary Doug Burgum.
