State of the CDC Workforce Study

 

This research study focuses on changes that occurred at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention/Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (CDC/ATSDR, or “CDC” for short) starting in January 2025.

Our research will focus on changes to CDC operations, policies, and personnel, and how these changes affected the health and well-being of the people who work at CDC.

This study is being conducted by researchers at Michigan State University, some of whom are former CDC employees. You can learn more about the study team at the bottom of this webpage.

 

LEARN MORE

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 → WHAT IS THE STUDY LIKE?

The study is an anonymous internet survey. The first survey will be sent in February 2026 and follow-up surveys will be sent periodically after that.

 

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 → WHAT KINDS  OF QUESTIONS ARE IN THE SURVEY?

We will ask you about:

• The kind of work you do or did at CDC
• Why you left CDC or why you’ve stayed
• Work-related stress, mental health, and burnout
• Specific events such as RIFs and the shooting on the Roybal Campus
• Changes at CDC that affected how you and others at CDC do your jobs

 

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→ WILL MY ANSWERS BE ANONYMOUS?

Yes, we’ll do everything we can to keep your answers anonymous. Here are some things we’re doing to make sure no one knows the identity of people participating in the study:

• Not collecting names, addresses, or any other information that could directly identify you
• Not collecting your IP address

You can also help keep yourself anonymous by:

• Only using personal devices (not government-owned equipment) to do the survey
• Not including any personal information in open-ended questions

Please don’t feel bad about skipping any questions in the survey. Skip any questions that make you uncomfortable or if you’re worried that your answer might be unique enough to identify you.

 

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 → AM I ELIGIBLE TO PARTICIPATE IN THE STUDY?

You are eligible to participate if you:

• Are at least 18 years old
• Were working for CDC on January 20, 2025 (Inauguration Day) as an employee, fellow, contractor, student, IPA, or guest researcher

 

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 → I’M A CURRENT CDC EMPLOYEE OR PHS OFFICER.  CAN I PARTICIPATE?

Yes, you can participate. We ask that you:

• Use personal devices (not government-owned equipment) to complete the survey
• Complete the survey when you’re off work, such as outside your tour of duty or on your lunch break
  
  

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→ HOW CAN I ENROLL IN THE STUDY?

Enrollment in the study is by invitation only.

 

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→ WAS THIS STUDY REVIEWED BY AN IRB?

Yes. This study was reviewed by the Michigan State University Institutional Review Board (Study #202600010).

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→ HOW CAN I GIVE FEEDBACK ON THE STUDY?

There are 3 ways for you to give feedback.

• When you complete the survey, the last question is a place for you to give us anonymous feedback
• Use this anonymous feedback form
• Contact the study team (see below)
  
  
  

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→ HOW CAN I CONTACT THE STUDY TEAM?

You can contact the study Principal Investigator, Dr. Candice Johnson, by email at candice@msu.edu.

Please note that Michigan State University is a public university and therefore correspondence sent to msu.edu accounts may meet the definition of a public record.

If you wish to contact us while remaining anonymous, we suggest that you use an email address that does not reveal your identity or that you ask someone to contact us on your behalf. Some of our study team members are former CDC employees; you can use LinkedIn to see if we have mutual connections who might be able to contact us for you.

 

MEET THE TEAM