The UN migration agency, facing severe US aid cuts, has announced mass layoffs impacting about 20% of its Geneva headquarters staff, affecting over 200 employees. This follows previous layoffs of around 3,000 staff linked to the halted US refugee resettlement program. The agency, reliant on US contributions for over 40% of its budget, cited “necessary adjustments” for its operational efficiency. Additionally, the layoffs have sparked anger among employees, particularly due to their implementation targeting junior positions. Amidst the turmoil, IOM Director General Amy Pope faced criticism for her public appearances while layoffs were occurring.
Geneva:
The UN migration agency, significantly affected by cuts in US foreign aid, has initiated another wave of mass layoffs, impacting roughly 20% of its workforce at the Geneva headquarters, employees reported on Friday.
Additional cuts at the International Organization for Migration are anticipated to affect at least 20 percent of its over 1,000 headquarters staff, as per several sources familiar with the situation.
“This implies over 200 employees. I suspect it’s even more,” a current IOM employee shared with AFP, requesting anonymity.
This announcement comes just weeks after the United Nations agency, which employed around 22,000 individuals at the end of last year, issued termination notices to approximately 3,000 staff members.
Among those let go were around 5,000 individuals involved in the US refugee resettlement program, which has been suspended by the administration of President Donald Trump.
“I can’t accurately describe the atmosphere,” the employee mentioned.
Earlier this week, members of IOM’s media department were “lined up for 15-minute individual meetings to announce their terminations”, which “turned into meetings lasting less than five minutes”, according to the employee.
Many employees were “emerging in tears”.
A former employee, who also wished to remain anonymous, noted that “dozens of staff” received notices on Thursday, “with more to follow”, and that “entire functional units have been eliminated”.
‘Necessary adjustments’
Insiders report that IOM’s partnership program and its information and communications technology division were among the areas most severely affected.
When contacted by AFP, IOM did not confirm the specifics of the recent layoffs.
However, a spokesperson acknowledged that the agency was “making necessary adjustments, including proportional and balanced workforce reductions and operational efficiencies”.
“We fully recognize the significant impact this has on both the communities we serve and our staff, and we are closely monitoring these changes to ensure our capacity meets necessary requirements,” the spokesperson stated.
A current employee indicated that informal internal communications circulated among headquarters staff informed employees that those with fixed-term contracts would be terminated in June, while other contract types would receive at least 30 days’ notice.
The recent layoffs follow Trump’s campaign to reduce US foreign aid contributions, which has sent the entire humanitarian sector into disarray.
The abrupt shift in aid funding from a country that has historically been the largest contributor has particularly impacted the IOM.
‘Angry’
The agency, which serves over 280 million migrants worldwide, has depended on the United States for more than 40 percent of its annual budget.
Almost all of its funding is derived from voluntary contributions designated for specific programs, meaning that if a donor halts payments, an entire program can be jeopardized, as witnessed with the IOM’s collaboration with the US Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP).
“We have to make some very tough choices regarding staffing because we simply cannot afford to pay employees when we are not being compensated for our work,” IOM Director General Amy Pope told AFP in a recent interview.
Meanwhile, IOM staff expressed frustration over the methods by which the layoffs were conducted, with one employee alleging that they seemed to primarily affect “mostly junior positions”.
Staff members also circulated a video on Friday, reportedly filmed during Pope’s visit to Guatemala this week, showing her joyfully dancing with the local team.
“The DG dancing while people are being terminated,” remarked an employee who shared the video.
“We are undoubtedly angry!”
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