Latest news with #AgLab
Yahoo
04-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Sorensen announces possible growth – not cuts – for the Peoria Ag Lab
PEORIA, Ill. (WMBD) — U.S. Rep. Eric Sorensen said the Ag Lab, instead of being shuttered, could actually see some growth. The release of next year's Agricultural Utilization Research budget proposal includes a potential growth for the National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research, more commonly known as the Ag Lab, for 'research expansion,' the congressman said in a news release. Terminated Peoria Ag Lab employees could return to work following a ruling 'When I heard this facility might be at risk, I made it a priority to make sure the administration and USDA leadership understood the value of this world-class research center. I'm proud to say our efforts paid off,' said the Rockford Democrat. 'We made our case loud and clear. I want to thank every researcher, every advocate, and every voice who spoke up. 'The work being done in this facility supports farmers, strengthens our food systems, and helps fight climate change. I'm proud to have stood with our community to show how important the NCAUR is—not just to Peoria, but to our entire nation' he said. Amid cuts being handed down by the Trump administration, fears rolled in about those cuts affecting the Ag Lab, said Ethan Roberts, the president of AFGE Local 3247, which is the union that represents the rank and file at the facility. 'The silence from USDA leadership created a culture of fear, driving away talented staff. But when we reached out to our stakeholders—especially the farming community—their support was overwhelming and helped put NCAUR and ARS back on the map,' he said. 'We're grateful to everyone who stood with us to protect the vital research we do for farmers and food safety.' Sorensen says he has been a 'fierce advocate' for the lab and has even outlined the lab's contributions to not only agriculture but also the regional economy. The lab has hundreds of employees and even supports local and global agricultural research and is the largest federal employer in the region, he said. The proposed budget would not just protect those hundreds of jobs but would also highlight their cutting-edge research, he said. Final funding decisions will be made by Congress, and Sorensen will continue to 'monitor the process and fight to make sure the Peoria Ag Lab remains fully protected,' he said. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
08-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Terminated Peoria Ag Lab employees could return to work following a ruling
PEORIA, Ill. (WMBD) — People around the country Friday rallied to 'stand up for science'. One of those joining the movement was U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, who spoke against cuts to research staff at the Ag Lab in Peoria. Durbin, the state's senior senator, stood outside the Ag Lab, formally known as the National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research to urge people to speak out against the cuts to the facility as well as others nationwide. 'I'm calling on all of the major farm groups in Illinois and farmers as well to stand up for the Ag Lab in Peoria,' the Illinois Democrat said. Durbin also called on U.S. Rep. Darin LaHood, a Peoria Republican, to advocate for the roughly 20 workers who were laid off last month from the research facility. 'I hope Darin LaHood supports this lab, and I hope he'll support the men and women who work here,' Durbin said. Ethan Roberts leads the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) local 3247. That's the union that represents more than 80 workers at the Ag Lab. Roberts said the Merit System Protection Board, a federal agency that provides a safeguard for federal employees, ruled Wednesday the thousands of workers laid off from the USDA must be reinstated within five days and provide proof to the board that they have done so. He said what it would mean to have the employees who were let go from the lab back to work. 'They'll be able to resume the very important projects that they were working on, for one,' he said. 'It would also be a great morale boost for the building because then we know that, at least legally, we have the protections that we were guaranteed on our side, that instead of worrying about our jobs every day, we can actually do our jobs.' When WMBD last spoke to Roberts immediately after the initial layoffs, he expected more employees to be terminated in the weeks following his interview. He said none have been let go since. If the employees return to work, there would most likely be, Roberts said, reduction in force, which he described as 'a highly complex and very specific procedure outlined in statute on how federal employees are supposed to be terminated in mass.' The MSPB asked for the names of the thousands of terminated workers, and the U.S. Office of Special Counsel asked for a 45-day stay for the employees, which would allow them to legally work and fulfill a legal layoff. Hampton Dellinger issued a statement on the U.S. Office of Special Counsel website explaining the counsel's move to ask for the stay. 'OSC requested this stay because the thousands of probationary terminations at USDA appear to have been carried out in a manner inconsistent with federal personnel laws,' Hampton said. Dellinger has since ended his legal appeal after his firing by President Donald Trump. Roberts explained what this could mean for the employees of the Ag Lab. 'There's no Office of Special Counsel person in place, and whoever is going to replace him will be appointed by the Trump administration, which does not give me hope that the permanent decision as to whether or not these employees should be reinstated will be in favor of the employees,' he said. Last month, we spoke with Dr. Jeannie Klein-Gordon, who was a research plant pathologist at the Ag lab before she was laid off. She expressed her worry in the press conference today about what the layoffs could mean on the grand scale of science. 'If we don't stand up now and stop what's happening here and elsewhere, I'm personally afraid that our America that is home to what I truly believe is the best in the world for agriculture and science will be no more,' Klein-Gordon said. We also spoke to Bri Walker, a secretary at the lab who was also laid off. She said in the presser that the lab is much more than just the work that is done there. 'The Ag lab produces not only an economic value for Peoria in terms of the research it does, the partnerships formed and the technology transfers, but in inspiring the next generation of scientists,' Walker said. Walker also noted how crucial science is for the future of the country. 'The American people cannot continue to live prosperous, productive lives without science, and science can't continue without the next generation of scientists.' A reduction in force typically and legally requires a 90-day notice. We have reached out to Congressman LaHood's office for comment and have not yet heard back. This is a developing story. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
07-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
'Stand with the Ag Lab': Sen. Dick Durbin decries federal job cuts in Peoria
U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., characterized the relationship between Donald Trump and Elon Musk as "on the rocks" Friday in Peoria where he was flanked by Peoria Mayor Rita Ali and workers from the Peoria National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research who all decried the federal cuts levied on the lab by the Trump administration. The reductions at the Peoria Ag Lab, which saw roughly 20 employees lose their jobs, are part of sweeping cuts of the federal government and bureaucracy that have hit federal workers, leases and contracts as part of an effort by Musk's Department of Government Efficiency to drastically reduce government spending. Reporting by the New York Times and Washington Post has found that DOGE has in some cases overinflated its purported costs savings from these cuts, and on Friday the New York Times reported that the relationship between Musk and Trump's cabinet may be beginning to fray. Durbin said Friday that the Republican-held Congress was not going to initiate an investigate into DOGE claims and then signaled that the relationship between Trump and Musk was "on the rocks." "Last night it was reported that they warned Mr. Musk that he doesn't have the authority to terminate jobs and that responsibility lies with the cabinet," Durbin said. "It's no surprise and you don't have to be a couples' counselor to know that this marriage might be on the rocks and this notion that the president and Mr. Musk are working together is at least questionable as to whether it's true." Durbin said research that happens at places like the Peoria Ag Lab is "critical to making America great" and said federal cuts like these "trouble me so much." "There are people who want to talk about making America great again. I believe research is critical to making America great, medical research, agriculture research and research across the board," Durbin said. "The researchers are critical as well." More: Peoria Ag Lab has been affected by federal cuts. Here's what we know Durbin also called on all farmers and major farm groups in Illinois to "stand with the Ag Lab." "We have so many talented people in this building, the Ag Lab, talented people that have come here from all over the United States and beyond, and they've done remarkable things," Durbin said. Former Peoria city councilmember Beth Jensen was representing U.S. Rep. Eric Sorensen, a Democrat from the 17th District, on Friday. She said the Trump administration's cuts put "vital agriculture research and hardworking federal employees at risk." "The Ag Lab is the largest federal employer in Peoria. Its economic impact on the city and the surrounding community is huge," Jensen said. "And these cuts hurt Peoria." Durbin, Sorensen and other Democrats signed a letter on Friday that was sent to U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins demanding that the government reinstate the jobs at the Peoria Ag Lab. "Let's hope, let's fight, to keep it here," Jensen said. Ali said Friday that the Peoria Ag Lab was home to some of the "best researchers in the world" and called it a "travesty" for Peoria to be losing those workers. "This is one of the, as he said, flagship agricultural laboratories in the country," Ali said. "The workers here, the researchers here, are some of the best in the world — I said in the world. They come from many places across the country to come and live in Peoria or the Peoria region. It a travesty to lose that kind of talent to our city and to our region and I stand with these workers, with these researchers and with Senator Durbin in having to fight, willing to fight to sustain this center and the research and the workers who contribute to our science." Peoria city council candidate Alex Carmona, who is running for the 2nd District seat that is home to the Ag Lab, attended Durbin's news conference Friday and told the Journal Star afterward that it was a "travesty" to see the cuts, especially given that one of his neighbors was one of those who lost their job at the lab. More: 'Absolutely devastating': Union leader says Peoria Ag Lab job cuts were 'illegal' "When it hits home that closely and you know the people who are affected by it... I was just talking to him today and he said the house he just bought he might have to sell it and try to look for a job elsewhere," Carmona said. "Nobody likes it." Ethan Roberts, president of the Local 3247 American Federation of Government Employees, the union that represents 86 employees at the Ag Lab, said Friday that the country is seeing an "unprecedented treatment of federal workers" and once again characterized the actions of the Trump administration as "illegal." "We will probably continue to experience attacks on federal workers and the unions that represent them, and I urge everyone who is watching this to contact your congressional representatives, whoever they may be, and ask them to 'please stand up for the rights of federal workers,'" Roberts said Friday. Former Ag Lab employee Jeannie Klein-Gordon, who was one of the employees who lost their jobs, was an anthropologist studying plant diseases at the Peoria Ag Lab before she received a termination notice last month. She said Friday "what I know and love is starting to crumble" in response to the federal cuts to researchers like her. "By cutting these programs and their funding off completely or at the knees by stifling support, we jeopardize the future of American agriculture, the ability to feed our citizens in the future and America's future as a leader in science," Klein-Gordon said. More: What to know about the 24 federal facilities DOGE says will close in Illinois This article originally appeared on Journal Star: Senator Durbin criticizes Trump-Musk relationship at Peoria Ag Lab
