Morale has tanked at Marco Rubio’s State Department as staffers are asked to work overtime ahead of looming layoffs.
Rubio has called the agency “bloated” and, in April, announced his intent to lay off 15 percent of its workforce of more than 2,000.
This month, however, staff at the State Department have been asked to work long hours to keep Americans overseas safe amid the flaring tensions between Israel and Iran—leaving staffers at the agency feeling insulted that they have been asked to volunteer for extra work while at the same time having their jobs threatened, according to The Washington Post.
One State Department official told the Post that the department “either doesn’t appreciate or just doesn’t care” about its workers.
“Doing extra shifts while this ax is swinging above our heads is just devastating to morale,” the insider added.
The tensions were exacerbated when staff were sent a message requesting that they round up joyous photos of July 4 celebrations at embassies and consulates around the world, the Post reported.
Staff were asked to “collect a high-quality set of visuals”—including “candid shots of attendees enjoying the event” and “smiling children, families, and diplomats.”
“To me, the irony of asking for happy photos of smiling children, happy families, and guests celebrating while threatening to fire thousands is peak Trumpism,” one State Department staffer said.
While Rubio initially gave a July 1 deadline for the layoffs, the Supreme Court is currently evaluating the permissibility of sweeping job cuts across the federal government under the Trump administration.
With no clear sense of when the ruling could come down, State Department officials have been left in limbo.
Tom Yazdgerdi, president of the union that represents America’s diplomats, told the Post that the job cuts “show serious disregard for members of the Foreign Service managing multiple conflicts and assisting American citizens in the Middle East and other crisis zones.”
“Despite the stress of not knowing when they or their colleagues might face layoff notices,” he said, “our members tell us they want nothing more than to remain on the front lines and continue to serve the American people.”
Speaking anonymously, a political appointee who worked on the State Department’s layoff plan told the Post that it was designed through a “thoughtful” and “deliberative process” that included “dozens of conversations with Congress, employees and stakeholders.”
The State Department did not immediately return the Daily Beast’s request for comment.
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