Trump administration shifts to next phase of large-scale cuts to federal workforce Joey Garrison
WASHINGTON – The Trump administration Wednesday ordered heads of federal departments and agencies to prepare to initiate “large-scale reductions in force” by March 13 as President Donald Trump shifts to a more aggressive phase of cutting the federal workforce.
A memo sent by the Personnel Management and Management and Budget offices has also instructed federal departments to eliminate and consolidate duplicative positions, reduce their property footprints and produce reorganization plans for their agencies.
“The federal government is costly, inefficient, and deeply in debt,” the memo from OMB Director Russ Vought and OPM Acting Director Charles Ezell says. “At the same time, it is not producing results for the American public. Instead, tax dollars are being siphoned off to fund unproductive and unnecessary programs that benefit radical interest groups while hurting hardworking American citizens.”
Mass firings of federal workers thus far have focused primarily on eliminating recently hired or promoted probationary workers in making drastic cuts to the federal workforce, an effort guided by billionaire tech entrepreneur Elon Musk, who heads the Department of Government Efficiency. This first round of firings came after buyouts were offered to all federal employees, which more than 75,000 workers accepted.
The newly ordered reductions, however, are expected to target federal employees with full civil service protection, not just probationary workers, according to the memo.
Exemptions include U.S. Postal Service workers, positions deemed necessary for law enforcement, national security and border and immigration obligations, as well as military personnel in the armed forces.
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