Trump admin started massive layoffs, hundreds of thousands of federal workers at risk of losing their jobs
Florida – Earlier this week, people of Florida got excited when Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis publicly announced that he is fully supportive of the idea of eliminating property taxes, citing that “taxing land/property is the more oppressive and ineffective form of taxation”. Lowering or eliminating taxes is part of President Donald Trump’s presidential campaign promises made to potential voters. In fact, DeSantis and the Republican-led Florida legislature are constantly trying to push for laws that would be closer to Trump’s promises made in the months prior to the presidential election, especially regarding how the country handles illegal immigrants.
Another big promise made by Trump during the presidential campaign was lowering the national debt. As soon as Donald Trump returned to the White House, he and the administration started to work on this. One of the first steps taken was to lower the number of federal employees by offering resignation offers to the nation’s two million federal government employees. Now, the Trump admin allegedly started with layoffs in what appears to be a move expected to impact thousands of employees.
A new ABC story based on their own sources claims that the layoffs target mostly probationary workers—those who recently entered the federal service within the last one to two years. These workers often have less workplace protections than their more experienced colleagues because of their relatively short tenure. According to the most recent data as of March 2024, there are roughly 150,000 federal employees (excluding those in the Department of Defense) who have been with the service for one year or less.
Among the affected agencies are the Department of Education, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), the Environmental Protection Agency, the General Services Administration, and the Small Business Administration, with additional agencies also commencing layoffs as directed.
The method of notification varied by agency. At some, staff members got emails including notices. A more detached method was used at the OPM: a group of around 200 probationary employees answered a call just to hear a taped message from Acting Director Charles Ezell announcing their termination. Ezell in his statement expressed gratitude them for their work and urged them to see this as a chance to advance in their professions.
“Good afternoon, thank you for taking the time to meet with me today. This is a difficult conversation, and I want to be direct, while also ensuring that you have all the information and support that you need,” acting OPM Director Charles Ezell told probationary employees, according to an audio recording of the call, obtained by ABC News. He told the employees they were being laid off and instructed them to “gather your personal belongings and exit the premises.”
This wave of layoffs is part of President Trump’s longstanding campaign pledge to reduce the size of the federal government. It follows an administration buyout offer that ended just one day before the layoffs. Accepted by more than 73,000 federal employees, the buyout plan offers full salary and benefits until September under a deferred resignation agreement.
With less personnel in important agencies handling everything from environmental protection to consumer finance and help for small business, the unexpected drop in federal staff is expected to raise concerns regarding the delivery of public services. As the government keeps forward with its aim to simplify government operations, it remains to be seen how these layoffs affect federal operations and public service delivery.
