Scientists Scramble for Humiliating New Jobs as Trump Cuts Bite

After the dismissal of numerous national park workers, Donald Trump Under his administration, park scientists are currently being reassigned from their research tasks to clean numerous campsite restrooms.

Roughly In February, approximately 1,000 recently recruited employees of the National Park Service (NPS) and around 3,400 U.S. Forest Service personnel were let go. , raising fears that the government's moves might damage some of the nation's most cherished natural areas.

In California Yosemite National Park is preparing for its most crowded season yet during a staffing crisis for maintenance personnel, largely due to the president’s postponement of hiring temporary workers at many of America's cherished national parks.

As the staff is overextended, maintenance of the bathrooms has been taken up by an unexpected collective including the park’s researchers, wardens, information technology personnel, and even those at the helm of management.

"When our supervisor initially informed us about being tasked with this new responsibility, I felt quite indignant," an employee, speaking on the condition of anonymity, shared. SFGate .

We're already short-staffed because of the hiring freeze imposed by the new administration, and now we’re getting additional tasks that aren’t part of our job responsibilities heaped onto our plates?

The National Park Service (NPS) typically employs around 7,000 to 8,000 temporary workers seasonally; however, these positions will not be subject to President Trump’s federal hiring freeze, which was implemented on his first day in office for his second term.

Supporters of national parks have contended that the reduction in staff along with the recruitment pause might result in accumulating garbage, deteriorating infrastructure, and extended queues for entering the parks and making reservations.

It seems Yosemite National Park has similar concerns.

An internal email obtained by SFGate from a coworker revealed that Acting Superintendent Stephanie Burkhart’s office asked the park's division leaders to assign employees to clean ten campground restroom facilities.

The email delineated five sections: Interpretation & Education, Resources Management and Science, Information Technology, Commercial Services, and Safety.

The email specified, 'Division Chiefs, you are required to review your team and pinpoint employees who could be temporarily transferred to custodial tasks for the Upper Pines campground restrooms, covering dates from April 15th until May 4th.'

Each permanent team member working in the Resources Management and Science Division—including biologists, hydrologists, archaeologists, and wildlife specialists—are mandated to take on at least one cleaning shift annually, as shared with the publication by a worker.

"I've enrolled in it, but I didn't actually have a say in the decision," the employee stated.

'I'm not above cleaning a bathroom, but personally am sick of our leadership not pushing back on anything and just towing the line.'

Members of the staff from the Yosemite Leadership Team will likewise be assigned to clean specific restrooms, aiding in addressing the clear shortage in personnel.

"I’m eager to find out how high up the leadership hierarchy this issue extends," said Ken Yager, who founded both the Yosemite Climbing Association and the yearly park cleanup initiative known as Yosemite. Facelift , told SFGate.

He asked, 'Is the superintendent supposed to be cleaning toilets?'" He continued, "I wouldn’t want to offend anyone, but I’m just wondering—are these division heads actually doing this work?'

In the disclosed email, the park’s management team detailed their investigation into alternative methods for handling restroom responsibilities at both Upper and Lower Pines Campgrounds, which collectively accommodate 308 sites.

They mulled over multiple choices: enlisting volunteer help, getting campground hosts to contribute their efforts, starting up the seasonal workforce sooner, or outsourcing the cleaning tasks to outside service providers.

Nevertheless, the petite team could not get any of these solutions operational within the required time frame, as stated in the email.

"We also thought about using porta-potties instead of opening restrooms, but we didn’t think this aligned with offering the outstanding visitor experience that guests have reserved and anticipate," the email said.

'Specifically since we have several full-time staff members who could undergo training to assist with this.'

Included with the email was a spreadsheet detailing which campground restrooms each team would be responsible for maintaining.

Regarding every restroom, the message requested from division leaders to identify two personnel for the morning shift and another pair for the evening shift, spanning across a duration of twenty days.

According to the email, 'It requires approximately two individuals around 2-3 hours each to sanitize five bathrooms in the morning and once more in the afternoon.'

The email highlighted that the main priority of the park was to ensure a pleasant visitation experience for guests, with particular emphasis on maintaining cleanliness and availability of the campground restrooms at all times.

Nevertheless, reallocating personnel to sanitize restrooms adheres to an directive issued by Interior SecretaryDoug Burgum to maintain national parks as ‘open and available’. The communication explicitly states that employees should only be reallocated when it does not impede guest entry.

In short, employees shouldn’t be pulled from critical visitor service duties solely for bathroom cleaning tasks.

Staff who have been reassigned were instructed to participate in custodial training as well as any necessary safety training specified by our park safety officer. The email mentioned that personal protective equipment along with a job hazard analysis would be provided to individuals assigned to restroom duties.

On Thursday, at a public gathering organized by Yosemite Gateway Partners within Yosemite Valley, the park’s Chief of Staff, Joe Meyer, delivered an overview regarding personnel changes, encompassing information on reallocating responsibilities.

"We’re aiming to recruit as much talent as we can. Our approval allows us to bring aboard more individuals this year compared to the previous one," Meyer stated to an audience comprising marketing experts, environmental advocates, community entrepreneurs, and others.

Even though certain crucial roles within the park are still vacant, Meyer stated that Washington is aiding in recruitment efforts, and new employees are now joining regularly.

'Meyer mentioned that campgrounds are receiving a significant amount of attention.'

"We currently have around half of our campgrounds operational, and we’re considering reassigning resources and employing additional strategies to enable the opening of more campgrounds and facilities," he explained.

'Therefore, we are rearranging roles among our team members to maintain maximum openness and accessibility for everyone.'

The initial one-hour custodial training session was held on Thursday as well, with around 40 staff members from various departments within the park attending. The training covered health hazards, basic protocols, and crucial safety gear.

Nevertheless, Yager is one of several individuals who think this represents yet another effort by the Trump administration to undermine the spirits within the park.

He mentioned to SFGate that it appears aimed at the scientifically inclined members of the park service – the more educated individuals.

It's not feasible. Individuals must recognize the importance of janitorial staff.

There are increasing worries among workers at national parks, particularly since seasonal staffing continues to lag behind schedule. Recent judicial decisions have permitted temporary personnel to face termination once more, coupled with the Trump administration’s proposal for another set of voluntary departures through buyout offers.

I continue to fret that additional reductions might occur, and even more responsibilities could end up being placed on the limited number of employees we retain, as everyone here feels incredibly overwhelmed," an employee shared with SFGate. "Still, I'm glad we’re facing this challenge collectively.

In February, Trump terminated thousands of national park and forest management employees in a maneuver by Elon Musk's DOGE to slim the government and root out fraud, waste and abuse - a choice subjected to intense examination.

California Senator Alex Padilla from the Democratic Party posted on X: "Disgraceful. This will lead to disorder in our National Parks, reduced healthcare for Native Americans, and the loss of technical personnel managing our water systems in the West. Americans should expect more."

Democratic Senator John Hickenlooper from Colorado also shared this statement: "National parks form an integral part of our lifestyle. These areas are where Coloradans pursue their professions and enjoy leisure time. They serve as guardians for our treasured natural vistas. Additionally, they fuel our local economies."

"These staff reductions might lead to deterioration of our national parks and put at risk the advantages they offer to people in Colorado," he went on to say.

The National Park Service has around 20,000 employees, whereas the Forest Service supports about 35,000 personnel.

The projections indicated that these cuts would result in reducing approximately 5% and 10% of the workforce in each respective agency.

After the reductions were unveiled, Yosemite National Park shared on social media platforms that they were postponing bookings for numerous high-demand campgrounds.

Even though the career shift was sudden and involuntary, workers grew more receptive to gaining knowledge from the maintenance team during training sessions. This openness particularly increased following observations of the maintenance crew’s zeal for educating everyone at the park regarding the intricacies of their roles.

An employee recounted to SFGate, "'By the conclusion of the training, one participant remarked, 'I am proud to share the same uniform as all my colleagues here, and I feel honored to work alongside you.'"

'I found this inspiring.'