Hundreds turned out in support of RMNP workers who have lost their jobs

Story by Barb Boyer Buck & Patti BrownMore than 500 people flanked both sides of the road for more than a mile Saturday morning near the entrance to the Beaver Meadows Visitors Center in Rocky Mountain National Park to show their support for Park employees whose jobs have been cut or are at risk.While the exact number of RMNP full-time and seasonal employees affected is not known because the National Park service will not provide that information despite media inquiries at both the local and national levels, the National Parks Conservation Association, a national nonprofit advocacy organization with 1.6 million members headquartered in Washington D.C., estimates that some 1,700 employees—approximately 9% of all NPS employees—have been fired or resigned since Feb. 14. Approximately 1,000 of those were probationary employees in their first year of federal employment or employees who have transitioned to a new job role, and 700 were full-time employees who have opted to take the “Fork in the Road” deferred resignation buyout program. Workers who opted for this plan had to accept the terms by Feb. 12.Additionally, an estimated 4,000 other federal employees who work for the Bureau of Land Management, the U.S. Forest Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and other land management offices have received notices that their jobs have been eliminated.Read full story here:Visit Estesvalleyvoice.com