An internal communication sent to multiple teams within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) indicates the administration is moving to remove civil service protections from a portion of the department's workforce.
The email, reviewed by reporters, states that the reclassification - identified as Schedule P/C and previously referred to as Schedule F - will apply initially to employees "on the order of hundreds, not thousands." It further indicates that additional groups of employees could be affected in subsequent tranches.
An HHS official confirmed the authenticity of the email and described the action as the finalization of "previously announced RIFs," using the standard government acronym for reductions in force or mass layoffs. The official also said that no new RIFs are planned beyond those already indicated.
The announcement centers on a personnel reclassification intended to alter the civil service status of selected employees. The email addresses members of multiple HHS agencies and signals that those named will see their roles shifted into the Schedule P/C classification.
Details in the message emphasize the initial scale - hundreds of employees - and that the change is part of a multi-step process, with additional tranches to follow. The HHS official's confirmation ties this administrative reclassification directly to the previously signaled workforce reductions and clarifies that the department does not intend to initiate fresh rounds of RIFs beyond what has already been disclosed.
The communication represents a formal personnel action within a major federal health agency and reflects an internal implementation of changes to employment classifications. The precise impact on individual employees or specific units within HHS beyond the description in the email was not detailed in the message or in the official confirmation provided.
Summary
The administration has reclassified certain HHS employees under Schedule P/C, eliminating civil service job protections for those affected. The reclassification will initially affect several hundred people, with more groups possibly to be reclassified later. HHS confirmed the email is authentic and said it finalizes previously announced reductions in force, while noting no additional RIFs are planned.