The federal agency that funds science research says the staff reduction came in response to a White House directive.

The cuts at the foundation, which supports cutting-edge research, came as the nation’s health and science agencies were reeling from other significant cuts.

Panch has been conveniently absent throughout this whole time,” said an internal email an NSF worker sent to fellow colleagues, referring to Sethuraman Panchanathan, NSF’s director.

Firings at the NSF included permanent employees who had already completed their one-year probationary period, as well as at-will workers.

The National Science Foundation fired 168 workers to comply with President Donald Trump’s executive order, the latest in a series of layoffs throughout the US government as the Trump administration seeks to shrink federal agencies.

Nearly 170 employees at the National Science Foundation (NSF) who were still on probation were fired by the Trump administration on Tuesday, union officials told The Hill. The cuts at the agency