November 20, 2025
The SBA despatched reduction-in-force notices to 77 staff on Sept. 29, simply at some point earlier than the longest authorities shutdown within the nation’s historical past.
Persons are criticizing the Small Enterprise Administration (SBA) for providing just lately laid-off employees their jobs again, solely to rescind its supply the following day.
“Yeah, that affected our workplace. It was a Christmas miracle for twenty-four hours till it become a nightmare. Morale hit a brand new low,” one individual commented on Reddit.
In line with the Federal Information Community (FNN), the SBA despatched reduction-in-force notices to 77 staff on Sept. 29, simply at some point earlier than the longest authorities shutdown within the nation’s historical past. This week, a high HR official advised dozens of employees that they have been again to work.
“This letter is to formally rescind the discount in drive (RIF) discover dated 9/29/25,” SBA’s Chief Human Capital Officer John Serpa advised staff in a Nov. 18 discover. “You might be being reinstated to your place of report with the Small Enterprise Administration (SBA).”
Then, a day later, Serpa advised staff that the layoffs would stay in impact.
“Are you able to even think about. The psychological thoughts f*ck this places individuals in? My gawd,” one other Reddit consumer commented.
What Led To SBA Confusion For Laid-off Staff
The confusion reportedly stems from competing interpretations of the language within the shutdown-ending spending deal that Congress handed to reopen the federal government. A SBA spokesperson advised FNN that the company “decided the latest persevering with decision signed into legislation doesn’t apply to any RIFs executed” by the company.
“Due to this fact, the RIF in query, affecting 77 positions, stays,” the spokesperson stated.
The spending invoice Congress handed on Nov. 12 to finish the federal government shutdown states, “any discount in drive proposed, seen, initiated, executed, and carried out, or in any other case taken by an government company between Oct. 1, 2025, and the date of enactment, shall don’t have any drive or impact.”
The layoffs at SBA weren’t included in a federal decide’s preliminary injunction that blocked the Trump administration from shifting ahead with any layoffs in the course of the shutdown. The decide’s ruling additionally doesn’t embrace RIF notices issued earlier than the shutdown, together with these despatched to SBA staff.
“The report could replicate that many staff of the Small Enterprise Administration have been contacting the courtroom. However it seems that the RIFs that they’re topic to went out on September 29 or 30, previous to the federal government shutdown,” U.S. District Courtroom Choose Susan Illston stated. “They might not be coated by this preliminary injunction.”
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