The Trump Administration announced a reduction of approximately 880 positions at the 13,000 employee National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration today, representing about 5% of the workforce.
Most, or all of the terminated employees appear to have been newly hired and on probationary status. NOAA is part of the Commerce Department.
NOAA operates the National Weather Service, which is responsible for issuing weather forecasts and warnings. NOAA is also responsible for monitoring the health of the oceans and the climate.
Immediately, Democrats in Congress decried this as a danger to Americans and basically the end of the world as we know it. The reality may be somewhat different. For years much of the work of its’ agencies has been positively impacted by new technologies, thus reducing the need for workers and increasing the quality of the data.
The National Weather Service has been a beneficiary of advanced technology to provide more accurate and up to the minute weather forecasts and warnings. Artificial Intelligence will greatly increase the quality of forecasts and decrease the need for humans to perform previously needed analysis.
The National Weather Service’s Forecast Office Flagstaff has seen a steady decline in the number of employees over the last 5 decades as technology has made forecasting the weather better and easier, thus requiring fewer employees. This decades long trend is expected to continue. In fact, in the future the Office may cease to even exist as Artificial Intelligence plays an increasing role in forecasting and life in general.
Despite the hyperbole of the Democrats, life will go on and we can expect the excellent work and forecasting of the National Weather Service and NOAA to continue to get more accurate and timely.
