WASHINGTON – U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) and Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) have introduced the Protect Our Probationary Employees Act, legislation aimed at protecting recently fired federal workers. The legislation would ensure that if and when employees are reinstated, they will not need to restart their probationary period for the same job they previously held. The legislation was introduced in the House of Representatives by U.S. Rep. Sarah Elfreth (D-MD-03).

“Over the past 50 days, more than 20,000 non-political civil servants have been ruthlessly booted from their jobs without cause. Unsurprisingly, a number of these individuals are now being reinstated, either through legal proceedings or because the Trump-Musk administration has realized that these jobs were necessary, and these employees not easily replaced,” said Sen. Warner. “This important legislation would ensure that those dedicated civil servants are able to pick back up where they left off and finish out their probationary periods without penalty.”

“The Trump-Musk illegal purge of federal employees has unfairly harmed thousands of dedicated civil servants and their families, while threatening the critical services they provide day in and day out to the American people. There is clearly no method to this madness – swept up in this chaos were longtime career employees who were recently promoted, along with others who had received glowing performance reviews for their good work. We will continue fighting to reverse these reprehensible actions in the courts – and as those efforts allow employees to return to their jobs, this legislation guarantees that these employees don’t have to restart the clock,” said Sen. Van Hollen.

Sen. Warner has been outspoken about the ramifications the Trump-Musk administration’s reckless actions will have on the federal workforce. During Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Russell Vought’s confirmation hearing, Sen. Warner grilled him on his plans to ‘traumatize’ federal workers. Sen. Warner has also repeatedly warned of the impact these actions will have on public health, national security, and veterans' services. He highlighted the real-world impact of these cuts during President Trump’s State of the Union Address, bringing Ashley Ranalli, a recently fired National Park Service ranger, as his guest.

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