Trump administration furloughs nuclear weapons agency staff due to shutdown

About 1,400 workers volition beryllium chopped from the agency, which is liable for overseeing the US atomic weapons stockpile.

The medication of United States President Donald Trump has announced that it volition furlough astir 1,400 workers astatine the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) starting adjacent week owed to the ongoing shutdown of the US government.

A spokesperson astatine the Department of Energy, of which the NNSA is simply a semiautonomous branch, said connected Friday that astir 400 workers would stay astatine the agency, which is liable for overseeing the US atomic weapons stockpile.

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President Trump’s vigor secretary, Chris Wright, said “enough is enough” successful a station connected X connected Friday, arsenic helium announced the planned furlough of NNSA workers.

“Starting adjacent week, we’re going to person to furlough thousands of workers that are captious to modernizing our atomic arsenal due to the fact that of [Chuck] Schumer’s disastrous Shutdown,” Wright said successful his post, referring to the US Senate’s Democratic enactment leader.

On Thursday, Democrats successful the Senate voted against advancing a Republican measure to widen backing to national agencies for a 10th time, and continuing the authorities shutdown that has present lasted for 17 days.

Starting adjacent week, we're going to person to furlough thousands of workers that are captious to modernizing our atomic arsenal due to the fact that of Schumer’s disastrous Shutdown.

Enough is enough!https://t.co/0jSorVkdkZ

— Secretary Chris Wright (@SecretaryWright) October 17, 2025

Republicans person blamed Democrats for the deadlock, arsenic they proceed to artifact the backing authorities to unit Republicans to negociate connected healthcare subsidies.

Federal employees categorised arsenic “essential” proceed to enactment without wage during authorities shutdowns until they tin beryllium reimbursed erstwhile it ends.

Approximately 750,000 of the US government’s much than 2 cardinal national employees person been furloughed truthful far, on with tens of thousands of national contractors.

The NNSA’s national unit oversee astir 60,000 contractors, who support and trial atomic weapons astatine nationalist laboratories and different locations crossed the US.

The bureau besides works to unafraid unsafe atomic materials astir the world, including successful Ukraine, wherever determination is an escalating hazard of nuclear disaster owed to Russia’s invasion, according to the United Nations.

Nuclear weapons power adept Daryl Kimball, who is the enforcement manager of the Arms Control Association, a nonpartisan organisation promoting arms control, criticised adjacent week’s imaginable cuts to NNSA staffing.

“If the Trump medication truly thinks the NNSA’s functions are important – and galore of them are indispensable for atomic installation information and information – I americium definite they tin find the funds to support the workers connected the job,” Kimball said.

“Or else, they mightiness privation to rethink their presumption connected the national authorities shutdown,” helium added.

Speaking to the Bloomberg quality organisation connected Friday, Energy Secretary Wright warned that modernisation of the US’s atomic weapons programme volition beryllium slowed by the shutdown.

“We’re conscionable getting momentum determination … To person everybody unpaid and not coming to work, that volition not beryllium helpful,” helium said.

The Energy Department said Wright would sojourn the National Nuclear Security Site successful Nevada connected Monday to sermon the impacts of the shutdown.

Earlier this year, NNSA employees were among hundreds of employees successful the Energy Department who received termination letters arsenic portion of Elon Musk’s short-lived efforts to slash authorities expenditure done his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).

The Trump medication rapidly scrambled to rehire the bulk of the axed employees, issuing a memo days aboriginal rescinding the firings.