An Iowan was among 1,000 National Park Services employees unexpectedly fired on Valentine’s Day.
Brian Gibbs’ Facebook post announcing his sudden departure garnered more than 73,000 reactions, over 11,000 comments and 180,000 shares — something the former Effigy Mounds education park ranger didn’t expect but knew was a story he needed to tell.
“My life every day is that I put on the green and gray. That is who I have been the past year,” Gibbs said in an interview. “Long term, I’m not sure what’s next.”
The fired National Parks Service members are part of President Donald Trump’s efforts to shrink the federal workforce, writes Pete Thomas of For The Win, USA Today. The National Parks Service has yet to officially announce the layoffs.
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The 1,000 workers are roughly 5% of the NPS workforce, which employs more than 20,000 people, according to the NPS website.
The announcement came alongside approval from the Trump administration to begin hiring 5,000 seasonal workers even though federal hiring had just been put on a freeze.
“Unfortunately, today’s cuts will leave parks understaffed, facing tough decisions about operating hours, public safety and resource protection,” a release from the National Parks Conservation Association said Friday.
‘Threatening emails’ had National Park Services employees waiting for news
Gibbs, 41, and other NPS employees knew there was something big coming — they’d gotten “threatening emails” that had come down the chain about potential layoffs — but they didn’t know when.
“We had a 10 a.m. meeting (on Friday, Feb. 14), and (Gibbs’ supervisor) said that there could be cuts coming to probationary employees,” Gibbs said. “We didn’t know the exact number.”
“All day Friday, it’s just like, ‘Well, what am I?’ Gibbs said. “I’m like, ‘Is this really happening?'”
Gibbs, who grew up in Boone, was locked out of his email during his Feb. 14 shift, not knowing whether he was among the thousands of workers fired. His supervisor confirmed his dismissal later that day.
“Without any type of formal notice, my position was ripped out from out under my feet at 4 p.m. on a cold snowy Friday,” Gibbs wrote in his posts on social media. “Before I could fully print off my government records, I was locked out of my email and unable to access my personal and professional records.”
The email, obtained by the Register, contradicted what had earlier been told to Gibbs about his “excellent performance,” stating:
“The Department determined that you have failed to demonstrate fitness or qualifications for continued employment because your subject matter knowledge, skills, and abilities do not meet the Department’s current needs, and it is necessary to terminate, during the probationary period, your appointment…”