Sophia Draznin-Nagy was fired from her trail worker position with the Bridger-Teton National Forest (BTNF) in mid-February.
“Not only did I lose my career through this termination, but I also lost my housing that was provided through my job, I lost my health insurance, and I have lost my community.” Draznin-Nagy told KHOL last month.
But on March 18, she got an email from Bekee Hotze, the second-in-command of the over three million-acre forest. The email says she and all fired U. S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) probationary employees had been placed on “administrative leave” and will be paid from the time of their termination if they are owed.
The USDA was ordered to hire back nearly 6,000 probationary workers for 45 days on March 5.
Several other BTNF and forest service employees told KHOL and WPR they received a similar email. The missive doesn’t include specifics like, when or if, employees can return to work. That guidance, according to the email, will be given by their supervisors in the future.
Some have like Sam Marks. She was also employed by BTNF but got laid off in mid-February. She got a similar email and then a phone call on March 20.
"I just got a phone call today from my boss’s boss saying that the US District Court of CA determined the probationary firing’s unlawful and has ordered reinstatement to employment while appeals are pending," Marks wrote in a text to WPR. "He is being told the intention of the judge was to have everyone in pay status not just on administrative leave (so have us working not just paid). People are welcome to go back to work starting Monday."
She had made previous plans and won't go back to work till April 14.
BTNF did not respond in time of publication to KHOL’s questions asking if probationary employees were being reinstated.
Stephanie Flinders was terminated from her job in the Uinta-Wasatch-Catche National Forest in mid-February. She told WPR on March 19 via text that her supervisor told her she should report back to work on Monday. She said she “never received an email or letter…still no word on how long it will last but I’m excited to go back.”
Though Draznin-Nagy said that she and others still have some confusion.
“Will they just fire us again in 45 days?” she said. “There are still other forces at play that could affect our employment in the long run.”
The Trump administration has directed federal agencies to provide plans for a “reduction in force” that could cause even more layoffs of federal workers across the nation in the coming months.
Despite this, Draznin-Nagy said she’s sticking to the plan she had before she was fired. She plans to return to Jackson, where she’s worked for the past two years, in early May.
She said she sees recent court developments as wins. Those include the 45-day stay and rulings by two judges late last week that ordered fired federal probationary employees to be reinstated across 18 agencies.
Both rulings also questioned the claim that federal workers were being fired for their “performance.” KHOL viewed three of Draznin-Nagy’s performance reviews before her firing which noted she “demonstrates a commitment and personal responsibility to strive for excellence.”
For now, Draznin-Nagy is feeling “cautiously optimistic.”
“But there are still a lot of unknowns,” she said.
