US FEMA reinstates employees it placed on leave after letter of dissent

By Kanishka Singh

WASHINGTON, April 30 (Reuters) – The U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency has reinstated more than a dozen employees who it placed on leave in August last year after they ​signed a public letter of dissent against the agency’s leadership ‌and its policies.

The reinstatement was confirmed on Thursday by a U.S. lawmaker and a non-profit group whose website published the letter.

Non-profit group Stand Up for Science said that “all signers who are placed on administrative leave have been given the ‌return ​to work order.”

The action that FEMA, which ⁠is part of the Department ⁠of Homeland Security, took last year led to concerns that President Donald Trump’s administration was intolerant of dissent, as Trump installed loyalists in leadership roles in an attempt to reshape U.S. ​agencies after taking office in early 2025.

Democratic U.S. Senator Andy Kim, who had advocated for the reinstatement of the workers, said he ⁠had made his case to the ⁠new DHS chief.

The reinstatement was first reported by NBC ​News which cited a DHS email exchange with the senator. U.S. ​media outlets also cited some of the reinstated employees, with ‌one of them saying she felt “vindicated.”

Dozens of current and former staff at the U.S. agency that responds to natural disasters warned in the open letter to Congress last year that the inexperience of top ⁠appointees of the Trump administration could lead to a catastrophe on the level of Hurricane Katrina.

The letter was critical of the policies and actions ⁠undertaken by former DHS ‌chief Kristi Noem.

FEMA has seen significant staff cuts ⁠since Trump took office. Trump fired Noem in ​early ‌March and tapped Markwayne Mullin as the new ​DHS chief.

A ⁠FEMA spokesperson said the agency was “addressing outstanding personnel actions to ensure workforce stability.”

“As we approach the 2026 hurricane season and the FIFA World Cup, FEMA is taking targeted steps to stabilize our workforce and strengthen readiness,” the spokesperson told U.S. media.

(Reporting by Kanishka Singh in Washington; Editing ​by Stephen Coates)