The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has begun issuing permanent termination notices to at least 600 employees, according to the American Federation of Government Employees, which represents more than 2,000 staff at the agency. The layoffs, effective earlier this week, are part of a restructuring drive by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services aimed at streamlining federal health agencies. Roughly 100 of the dismissed workers were involved in the CDC’s violence-prevention programs, the union said. Their jobs were not shielded by a federal judge’s preliminary ruling last week that protected employees in other divisions, including smoking, reproductive health and environmental health. HHS confirmed that terminations are under way but did not provide an exact headcount. The cuts come less than two weeks after a gunman fired about 180 rounds at the CDC’s Atlanta campus, killing a police officer—an incident some staff cited in questioning the timing of the layoffs. Projects affected by the workforce reduction include efforts to curb rape, child abuse and teen dating violence, as well as international initiatives to track violence against children.