No, they are not obligated to bring back their furloughed employees. That’s usually the expectation, but it is not a requirement. Furloughed employees retain all of their employment rights, however, so the employer can’t hire someone else for the position without going through the process of laying off the original employee.
@Yellowdog “The Democrats in congress…”
You mean the party that currently controls one half of one branch of the federal government? The Republicans control the courts, the Senate, and the entire executive branch (which oversees the distribution of relief funds). And all of the bills that have been passed so far have had broad bipartisan support. So it’s complete and utter nonsense to pretend that the Democrats have somehow managed to wrestle control over the process.
“redirected most of it to their own projects, such as the Kennedy Center (which let go all of its musicians and employees anyway), Planned Parenthood”
The emergency relief bill contains a Hyde Amendment provision that explicitly excludes Planned Parenthood from receiving money. And the Kennedy Center is owned and operated by the federal government. The money it received was for its utilities and upkeep budget, not extra money to retain its employees (who already receive unemployment benefits). If you’re really this uninformed, you should consider educating yourself instead of spewing your ignorance all over the internet.