Thousands of federal employees are preparing for potential job losses after the White House issued a threat of widespread dismissals if an agreement is not reached to prevent a government shutdown.
The government’s funds will be depleted by [unspecified time] unless Democrats and Republicans come to terms on a funding bill. Although Democratic leaders are scheduled to meet with President Donald Trump at the White House on Monday, a significant divergence in opinion still exists between the two factions.
Government shutdowns commonly lead to furloughs and delayed paychecks, but the situation has been further complicated after the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) instructed federal agencies to regard the shutdown as an “opportunity” to implement workforce reductions, specifically in departments not legally mandated to continue operating.
This directive has left many federal workers anticipating the worst-case scenario.
“Naturally, you become careful with your expenditures, acquiring only what is essential. You prepare for a furlough,” one park ranger, who requested anonymity due to concerns of reprisal, conveyed to TIME. “Except in this instance, with Trump, you prepare for an unjust dismissal,” he added.
Park rangers have experienced particular difficulties this year. A Republican Bill endorsed by Trump in July reclaimed $267 million of previously committed funding for national park staff, and the proposed 2026 budget for the National Park Service suggests reducing the workforce by over 5,000 positions.
The ranger interviewed by TIME is still coping with the aftermath of a previous incident of layoffs, which incited widespread condemnation from unions and employees.
“Those weeks of uncertainty, not knowing what my next steps would be to support myself, were dreadful. It was one of the most challenging periods of my life. Thinking about it causes a terrible sensation in my stomach, and I haven’t had a good appetite for the past couple of days because of it,” he told TIME. “It’s terrible to consider that it’s about to happen again.”
The park ranger stated that he and his fellow federal workers are being treated as “chess pieces” by the federal government. He mentioned having refilled his medication in advance, just in case he loses his employment this week.
Federal workers were put on high alert late last week when the OMB, under the direction of Russell Vought, communicated in a memo that government departments should perceive the shutdown as an “opportunity to consider reduction in force.”
This directive sparked indignation from federal worker unions.
“Federal employees are not leverageable assets. They are veterans, caregivers, law enforcement officers, and community members who serve their country and fellow Americans daily,” the American Federation for Government Employees stated. “They deserve stability and respect, not termination notices and political gambits.”
National Treasury Employees Union President Doreen Greenwald asserted that the budget was being utilized “as a game of chicken with federal employees as the collateral damage,” while House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries called someone “a malignant political hack.”
Democratic leadership has maintained a similar stance since the news emerged—they would not be “intimidated,” and continue to decline support for the Republicans’ stop-gap bill unless the party reversed billions in cuts planned within the “Big Beautiful Bill,” restored funding to public broadcasting and foreign aid, and allocated millions of dollars in security funding for public officials.
“These unnecessary firings will either be overturned in court or the administration will ultimately rehire the workers, precisely as they did as recently as this week,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer commented.