The Trump administration’s mass firings of federal employees have hit McCall hard, especially because the Forest Service is one of the area’s most important employers. A steward with the National Federation of Federal Employees (NFFE) who works on the Payette National Forest estimated some 50 of his colleagues had been let go, with dozens more on neighboring forests. The agency did not confirm the number of firings on that forest, but did say that the U.S. Department of Agriculture “has made the difficult decision to release about 2,000 probationary, non-firefighting employees from the Forest Service.” Other public land agencies, like the U.S. Interior Department, are also reportedly carrying out major layoffs. . #BoiseStatePublicRadio #McCall #Idaho #PayetteNationalForest #ForestService