RTI International lays off more workers, including in NC, after Trump funding cuts
RTI International, a Durham-based research nonprofit and one of the Triangle’s largest employers, confirmed its second staff reduction in as many months Thursday, laying off around 150 workers, including more than 80 in North Carolina.
Citing “continued federal funding cuts,” the organization acknowledged more dismissals could be forthcoming.
“As we adapt to evolving federal priorities, additional workforce changes may be necessary in the coming weeks to ensure RTI’s long-term stability and impact,” it said in an emailed statement.
On Feb. 13, RTI announced “temporary layoffs” impacting 266 U.S. workers, including 61 in its home state. This week’s job cuts are separate from this initial reduction, the organization said.
An original anchor tenant of Research Triangle Park, RTI conducts thousands of scientific research projects annually, both domestically and abroad. The U.S. government is its main client overall, accounting for 84% of the nonprofit’s revenue in recent years.
RTI International stands to lose millions through the Trump administration’s gutting of U.S. Agency for International Development and cuts to funding and grant reviews at the National Institutes of Health. During fiscal year 2023, an independent financial audit showed the organization received $168 million, or approximately 10% of its yearly revenue, from USAID.
“We are committed to supporting both our departing and remaining staff during this transition,” the organization said. “RTI remains focused on advancing technical solutions and data-driven research that contribute to a safer, stronger, and more prosperous nation and world.”
Facing NIH and USAID changes
RTI International is the ninth-largest employer in Durham County and had more than 2,400 employees, counting teleworkers, report to its RTP offices as recently as 2023. Last year, it received nearly $400 million through 92 NIH awards, including $974,000 to study a drug overdose intervention and $458,000 for preteen suicide prevention.
According to the Congressional Research Service, the nonprofit organization was obligated to receive $2.3 billion from USAID for nonmilitary foreign assistance between 2013 and 2022, the sixth-most among all nongovernmental organizations. Its recent USAID-backed projects included anti-corruption efforts in Uganda, power sector improvements in the Philippines, and water and sanitation service expansion in Ecuador.
President John Kennedy created USAID through an executive order in 1961, near the height of the Cold War. In a speech to Congress that year, Kennedy called providing foreign assistance part of the U.S.’s moral, economic and political “obligations.”
Another Durham-based global research nonprofit, FHI 360, received the third-most USAID funding from 2013 to 2022. In February, the organization furloughed 36% of its U.S. staff, including more than 200 employees in North Carolina.
On Wednesday, the U.S. Supreme Court backed a federal judge’s authority to make the Trump administration unfreeze $2 billion owed to U.S. Agency for International Development contractors. The ruling, however, did not set a deadline for when this money must be paid.
This story was originally published March 6, 2025 at 4:41 PM.
