Johns Hopkins University will lay off about 200 employees in May as part of a planned cost cutting measure related to concerns about the loss of federal grant funding spurred by the Trump administration’s attempt to clamp down on some government spending.
The university reported the planned layoffs to the Department of Labor. More than 100 will come from the Bloomberg School of Public Health’s Center for Communication Programs and about 130 will come from the JHU global health nonprofit Jhpiego.
“U.S. based employees are all being given at least 60 days of advance notice before the reductions or furloughs take effect, and we are providing comprehensive support with additional benefits, assistance, and resources to help employees navigate this transition and explore new opportunities,” JHU spokesman Doug Donovan said in a statement. “For international employees, we will be complying with local employment laws.”
JHU President Ron Daniels announced last week that the school’s aid groups will lay off about 2,000 employees.
“We can confirm that the elimination of foreign aid funding has led to the loss of 1,975 positions in 44 countries internationally and 247 in the United States in the affected programs,” Donovan said. “An additional 29 international and 78 domestic employees will be furloughed with a reduced schedule. Johns Hopkins is immensely proud of the work done by our colleagues in Jhpiego, the Bloomberg School of Public Health, and the School of Medicine to care for mothers and infants, fight disease, provide clean drinking water, and advance countless other critical, life-saving efforts around the world.”
The Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency initiative effectively gutted USAID earlier this year through layoffs and by freezing grant funding.
The moves made JHU reconsider how it will move forward with its programs.
On Tuesday night, a federal judge in Maryland granted a preliminary injunction on actions against USAID.
“The court finds that Defendants’ unilateral actions to shut down USAID likely violated the United States Constitution,” said Judge Theodore D. Chuang of the U.S. District Court in Maryland.
The White House plans on appealing the decision.
