Kristi Noem just received a very public reminder that even within a fearful federal bureaucracy, workers still have rights.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency has quietly recalled a group of employees back to the office after sidelining them for months for criticizing Noem and Donald Trump’s disaster plans, according to Bloomberg. This marks a sharp turn for Noem, whose Department of Homeland Security oversees FEMA and who has tried to crack down on internal dissent while seeking to reshape the agency in Trump’s image.
The uproar began in August when nearly 200 current and former FEMA workers signed the “Katrina Declaration,” a harsh open letter released on the twentieth anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. The letter lists political interference, budget cuts, and staved off disaster experts as reasons the ageny has been left weakened. The signatories directly called out Noem and urged Congress to protect the workforce from politically motivated firings.
About 36 employees who signed their names publicly faced consequences. Within a day, DHS placed up to 14 of them on administrative leave, revoked their access, and ordered them not to contact colleagues.
Inside FEMA, the crackdown felt like a purge. Employees faced interrogations by investigators while the agency struggled through another hurricane season with hundreds of vacancies. Morale plummeted, and workers described a chilling environment where voicing concerns could end careers.
BREAKING:
Insane twist in this story. FEMA spox has just told me that the reinstated workers have now been RE-SUSPENDED because they were reinstated by “bureaucrats acting outside of their authority.”
They were originally put on leave in August.
— Leigh Kimmins McManus (@LeighMcManus1) December 1, 2025
The agency has ended its investigation into the letter and informed the suspended employees that they can return to work. No discipline is coming. Instead, the workers have essentially been cleared.
“I am very glad that I’m officially cleared of wrongdoing and that I get to be back at work and see my coworkers after three months,” said Abby McIlraith, an emergency management specialist preparing to return to her post.
For Noem, who has presented herself as a tough enforcer at DHS and earned the nickname “ICE Barbie” from critics, the optics are harsh. She approved an aggressive response that removed disaster specialists from the field during peak season, only to see federal whistleblower rules and legal pressure force her agency to reverse course.
David Seide, senior counsel at the Government Accountability Project and a lawyer for several of the employees, stated that the reversal acknowledged that the workers’ actions were protected by law. He pointed out that FEMA’s retreat should end the issue, with no discipline in sight.
After news surfaced that the workers had been reinstated, DHS scrambled to clarify, with some employees reportedly told that they were returned to work “in error” and pushed back onto leave. This left outside observers confused and highlighted the chaos in Noem’s response.
The Katrina Declaration is still a sharp critique of how Noem and Trump have treated FEMA, warning that partisan pressure, underfunding, and climate denial are undermining the nation’s disaster response capabilities. The workers urged Congress to strengthen protections and keep emergency management decisions free from political retaliation.
Instead, Noem tried to make an example of them. Now, many of those employees are returning to their offices, vindicated, with legal support and a clear record showing they were punished for speaking out.
For a cabinet secretary focused on displaying control, it is hard to imagine a more public humiliation.
