The last days of work for so many who had government jobs.

I'm David Brancaccio. The Trump administration has expanded its campaign to terminate the jobs of federal workers with a new focus on people who have what's called probationary status.

These workers, which number in the hundreds of thousands, are mainly recent hires, usually one year or less,

who don't yet have congressionally enacted civil service protections.

Prior to yesterday's action, the White House had put federal rank-and-file workers on administrative leave,

and earlier this week, the Office of Personnel Management said,

underperforming recent hires should be fired.

But the office expanded that order yesterday,

sparking a new round of layoffs among so-called probationary employees, typically those on the job

one year or less. Employees have been let go at multiple agencies. The Department of Veterans Affairs

said it laid off a thousand probationary employees. Democratic Senator Patty Murray identified them as researchers

in areas such as burn pit exposure and prosthetics.

Additional workers were reportedly let go at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

Among those in danger of being laid off include food safety inspectors

at the Agriculture Department.

I'm Novosafo for Marketplace.

This week, we've been exploring structural discrimination in the housing market over the years

and what that does to economic opportunity.

Our project, Unlocking the Gates, is a reporter's personal story.

Marketplace Special correspondent Lee Hawkins is from Minnesota, a state where new ways to lock people out of home ownership were devised.

Now, what's being done to fix that today?

Home ownership is more than a marker of personal achievement.

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