National Park Service Has Lost At Least 12.5 Percent Of Full-Time Employees In 80 Days

Thousands of NPS staff leave voluntarily ahead of mass reductions in force

The National Parks Conservation Association estimates that 2,400 to 2,500 staff at the National Park Service have accepted voluntary buyouts or early retirements offered by the Trump administration. Those losses add to the 1,000 NPS staff with probationary status who were fired on February 14 (an unknown number of which have returned to their jobs). Just three months ago, full-time NPS staffing stood at 20,000 people. Today, that number may already be lower than 17,000. Those numbers are significant enough that they will be felt by park visitors this summer, and will also impact the totality of park operations, even as the interior secretary orders that all park attractions must remain open.

“The National Park Service is an operational agency requiring a full staff to ensure the public have a safe visit, facilities are maintained and the resources are protected,” Jonathan Jarvis, who served as NPS Director during the Obama administration, explained when I told him the news. “Remove 10-…