Federal Workers Stage Sit-in at Senate Building Amid Mass Layoffs

As thousands of federal workers face layoffs, some are taking their fight to Capitol Hill. The newly formed Fork Off Coalition, composed of recently laid-off government employees, held a job fair and staged a sit-in at a Senate building on Tuesday. They targeted the offices of Senators Susan Collins, Lisa Murkowski, Tammy Duckworth, and Lindsey Graham.

The coalition has been holding training sessions with terminated workers on Capitol Hill, pairing them up to share their stories with Senators' offices. One worker, who wished to remain anonymous, was placed on administrative leave from the Administration for Children and Families. She brought her son to Congress, calling it a "civics lesson."

"I have three children and I had to sit them down and tell them that I had been fired illegally from my job," she explained. "And both my son and my daughter were asking, like, what are we going to do? Will we be able to buy things?"

Another worker, also requesting anonymity, had recently completed her probationary period at the National Science Foundation but was reclassified and fired. She said roughly 10% to 12% of the workforce was cut at NSF.

"We are all PhD scientists. We're all former professors. We're all experts doing, you know, doing the best we can every single day to make sure our tax dollars are well invested," she said.

The workers said they have been received well by lawmakers on both sides of the aisle. They are urging Senators to take action to protect the rule of law and support those affected by the illegal firings.

The Fork Off Coalition has held demonstrations outside various agencies to protest the cuts by the White House's Department of Government Efficiency, led by Elon Musk. They hope to keep the pressure on Congress to address the impact of these layoffs on individuals and communities.