Three people familiar with internal operations at BPA confirmed that 89 staff who’d been fired are receiving emails or letters asking them to return to work. About 35 were already.
A spokesperson for BPA declined to comment. But insiders confirmed that offers to return to work went out Thursday. Those staff asked not to be named out of fear of retaliation, but OPB has verified their identities. Among those who are being asked to return are staff who worked in diversity roles that have been targeted by the Trump administration.
Even after rescinding those terminations, the agency is still down hundreds of positions, after 240 resigned in exchange for a buyout offer and 90 people who received job offers had those offers canceled.
BPA operates 75% of the Northwest’s power grid, distributes hydropower from 31 federal dams, and plays a key role in ensuring reliable access to electricity for millions of people in the Northwest. It covers its expenses from revenue its operations generate, and makes annual payments to the federal government.
OPB on Feb. 13, prompting a public outcry from utility experts and federal officials concerned that the cuts could affect the reliability of the Northwest power grid.
Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek to federal cabinet secretaries decrying the cuts.
“These positions were linemen, engineers, substation operators and power dispatchers, and multiple entities across the Pacific Northwest are raising real alarm about grid instability and power outages due to a shortage of staff who know how to manage grid events,” Kotek wrote. “As you know, BPA is a self-supporting entity. Ongoing workforce reductions by definition will not impact federal spending, but they do create instability for power availability and rates in the region.”
The people who are being asked to come back to BPA after being fired were all in their first year or two on the job, and so still in probationary status with fewer civil service protections.
The firings and rehirings at Bonneville mirror a sometimes chaotic approach to federal staffing that has played out at many agencies since Trump took office. The administration has fired tens of thousands of federal workers, including nationwide. Those cuts have raised concerns about wildfire preparedness in the Northwest.
Many of the firings have been challenged in court. On Wednesday, a federal judge ordered the at that agency.