LOS ANGELES, Feb. 14 (Xinhua) -- Nearly 1,300 employees at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) -- about one-tenth of the agency's workforce -- are cut off as part of the Donald Trump administration's move to fire probationary employees.
The CDC leadership was notified of the decision Friday morning, according to media reports.
The affected employees are supposed to receive four weeks paid administrative leave, according to a report of NBC News, citing sources from a federal official.
With 9.2 billion U.S. dollars core budget, the CDC is charged with protecting Americans from outbreaks and other public health threats. Before the cuts, the agency had about 13,000 employees, including more than 2,000 staff working in other countries.
The Trump administration began a mass firing of federal workers on Thursday. Hundreds of thousands of people could be affected, according to data from the U.S. Office of Personnel Management.
