Michael Sainato

3 days ago | theguardian.com | Michael Sainato

Mass terminations and billions of dollars’ worth of cuts at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) have gutted key programs – from child support services to HIV treatment abroad – and created a “real danger” that disease outbreaks will be missed, according to former workers. Workers at the HHS, now led by Robert F Kennedy Jr, and in public health warned in interviews that chaotic, flawed and sweeping reductions would have broad, negative effects across the US and beyond.

1 week ago | portside.org | Michael Sainato

Mass Resignations at Labor Department Threaten Workers in US and Overseas, Warn Staff – As More Cuts Loom Published May 5, 2025 A “catastrophic” exodus of thousands of employees from the US Department of Labor threatens “all of the core aspects of working life”, insiders have warned, amid fears that the Trump administration will further slash the agency’s operations.

1 week ago | theguardian.com | Lauren Gambino |Michael Sainato

In the 100 days since Donald Trump returned to power, the new administration has driven tens of thousands of federal workers from a civil service it has denigrated as “bloated” and “corrupt”. Among its first targets: probationary workers like Cindi Hron.

1 week ago | theguardian.com | Michael Sainato

A “catastrophic” exodus of thousands of employees from the US Department of Labor threatens “all of the core aspects of working life”, insiders have warned, amid fears that the Trump administration will further slash the agency’s operations. The federal agency has already lost about 20% of its workforce, according to employees, as nearly 2,700 staff took retirement, early retirement, deferred resignation buyouts or “fork in the road” departures earlier this year.

1 week ago | theguardian.com | Joanna Partridge |Michael Sainato

Markets on both sides of the Atlantic rose on Friday after hiring in the US slowed less than expected in April, offering a glimmer of hope that the world’s largest economy was in a better-than-feared position to withstand the fallout from Donald Trump’s tariffs. On Wall Street the S&P 500 was up 1.5% and the Dow Jones rose 1.3% by early afternoon on Friday, while European markets closed sharply higher after official figures showed the US workforce grew by 177,000 last month.