Acting Ranking Member Lynch Stands Up for Mistreated Workers, Demands Commerce Department Rectify Its Failure to Provide Health Insurance to Illegally Terminated Employees
Washington, D.C. (June 4, 2025)— Today, Rep. Stephen F. Lynch, Acting Ranking Member of the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, sent a letter to Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick following reports received by Committee Democrats that illegally fired employees were denied health coverage for which they had already paid and that Commerce did not honor its required commitment to continue employee health coverage for a 31-day period after their termination.
“Committee Democrats received reports that employees were fired, some with just hours’ notice, and denied health coverage for which they had already paid. Commerce also failed to honor its commitment to fired employees that their health coverage would continue for a 31-day period after their termination. I urge you to take immediate action to remedy the financial and physical injury done to employees who had their health coverage illegally cancelled and withheld and to ensure that employees receive their personnel documents. I also request information about how you are ensuring that such abuse of agency employees never occurs again,” wrote Acting Ranking Member Lynch.
Between January 20, 2025, and March 3, 2025, Commerce illegally fired approximately 800 probationary employees as part of the Trump Administration’s purge of nonpartisan federal public servants. However, following a federal judge’s ruling on March 17, 2025, these probationary employees were reinstated and placed on administrative leave, again paying health care premiums. Yet, less than a month later, the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals voided the lower court’s decision, once again terminating the re-hired employees. Subsequently, some of these employees discovered that their health insurance coverage ended on April 8, 2025, two days before they were officially fired.
“Multiple terminated probationary employees at Commerce have told Committee Democrats that they were unable to confirm whether their health insurance would cover medical care they received during a period when their coverage should have remained active. In one case, an employee with more than a decade of continuous service at Commerce who was classified as ‘probationary’ after accepting a promotion within the agency was told that the health insurance premiums paid into the Federal Employee Health Benefit Program would not be refunded despite Commerce’s early cancellation of health coverage without notification. In another case, former Commerce employees were denied healthcare during the 31-day postemployment period and left without coverage with no notice. Commerce’s failure to meet its health care obligations to its employees raises concerns about whether other forms of owed compensation, such as payment for earned leave and credit hours, are being denied,” concluded the Acting Ranking Member.
This back-and-forth game of employment and revocation of health care coverage illustrates the Trump Administration’s disregard for federal employees’ public service and wellbeing.
To determine the scope of the Trump Administration’s failures and prevent further damage, Acting Ranking Member Lynch has requested all information and documentation regarding the illegal termination of probationary employees and their health care coverage no later than June 18, 2025.
Click here to read the letter to Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick.
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