FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Contact: Matt Dorsey
(202) 550-6987
March 3, 2025
Washington, D.C. – Tomorrow evening, National Federation of Federal Employees (NFFE-IAM) member Ben Vizzachero will attend the President’s Address to a Joint Session of Congress as a guest of U.S. Representative Jimmy Panetta (CA-19).
Vizzachero, a wildlife biologist who worked on wildfire prevention and environmental conservation projects on the Los Padres National Forest, was one of the first employees unlawfully terminated despite receiving a recent raise, promotion, and excellent performance reviews. On February 15, the Administration fired 3,400 U.S. Forest Service employees, 10% of the agency’s workforce, despite Congress having fully budgeted their salaries beyond legislated funding.
“President Trump and Elon Musk’s illegal attacks on the federal workforce have not only devastated the livelihoods of tens of thousands of dedicated public servants, but their actions also undermine the Forest Service’s ability to prevent and suppress wildfires, landslides, and other natural disasters,” said Vizzachero. “DOGE’s cuts also impair the maintenance and protection of our water, roads, trails, cultural and tribal sites, scenery, wildlife habitat, and more. The U.S. public land system is an international paragon of conservation; it is essential to the American economy and cultural identity. If the Trump Administration truly cared about making America great, they would invest in hiring more proud union workers to steward our lands. From leading scientific experts to humble park rangers, we are the people who keep America beautiful.”
“The President callously terminating Ben and thousands of other federal workers under the guise of efficiency is both shameful and dangerous,” said NFFE National President Randy Erwin. “These are Americans who have given their livelihoods to protecting our public lands and making their country a better place. By indiscriminately firing experts like Ben, President Trump is choosing to let our public lands deteriorate and be ravaged by wildfires. The country must understand the dire consequences of the Trump Administration’s reckless attacks on the civil service. Thank you to Congressman Panetta for giving Ben a platform and for his commitment to supporting federal workers.”