Samantha Leach had been thrilled eight months ago to find a job she loved, working with a team that appreciated her skills and enthusiasm when she went to work at the federal Bureau of Engraving and Printing.
That joy came crashing down earlier this month when she learned she was among tens of thousands of probationary federal government employees abruptly fired. Even a recent performance review with a perfect score of five out of five couldn’t protect her as President Donald Trump moved to fire the vast majority of the federal government’s probationary employees.
The reference to poor job performance in her termination letter was an additional gutting blow, she said.
“I was good at my job, very good at my job, and I wanted to stay being good at my job,” she said. “I did everything right. Literally. And I still got fired. So for someone like me who wants nothing more in the world than to fit somewhere and contribute, to be fired when I’m doing that is kind of soul crushing.”
Like Leach, dozens of former federal workers tell USA TODAY reporters they were particularly hurt and angry that their termination letters cited poor work despite receiving performance awards, or years of positive performance reviews. Several fear the letter could keep them from getting other government jobs or even follow them into the private sector.