Department workplaces bought closed down until Thursday
Agencies cut workers using lump-sum payments, early retirement
Thursday is due date to submit prepare for massive layoffs
(Adds brand-new government report on improper payments, paragraphs 12-14)
By Timothy Gardner, Tim Reid, Alexandra Alper and Marisa Taylor
WASHINGTON, March 11 (Reuters) - The U.S. Department of Education stated on Tuesday it would lay off almost half its staff, a possible precursor to closing completely, as federal government agencies rushed to fulfill President Donald Trump's due date to submit plans for a 2nd round of mass layoffs.
The terminations become part of the department's "last mission," it stated in a news release, pointing to Trump's vow to get rid of the department, which manages $1.6 trillion in college loans, imposes civil liberties laws in schools and supplies federal funding for needy districts.
Asked on Fox News whether the firings would lead to the department's dismantling, Secretary of Education Linda McMahon stated "yes," including that doing so "was the president's required." The layoffs would leave the department with 2,183 workers, below 4,133 when Trump took workplace in January.
Before announcing the layoffs, the company ordered offices in the Washington location near personnel from Tuesday night through Wednesday, according to an internal notice seen by Reuters. An Education Department spokesperson did not immediately respond to questions about the nature of the security issues triggering the closures.
Similar closures worked as a precursor to shuttering the headquarters of the U.S. Agency for International Development, the humanitarian help agency, and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which protects Americans versus unethical loan providers.
The layoffs are the current step in Trump's sweeping effort to scale down the federal government, led by the world's wealthiest person Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency. DOGE has cut more than 100,000 tasks throughout the 2.3 million-member federal civilian administration, frozen most foreign aid and canceled thousands of programs and agreements, regardless of dozens of lawsuits challenging the legality of those moves.
DOGE's blunt-force technique has actually irritated several White House authorities and Republican legislators, a few of whom have actually faced mad constituents at town halls. Trump told department heads recently that they, not Musk, have the last say on staffing, his very first noteworthy public move to limit the Tesla CEO.
All U.S. federal government agencies have been bought to come up with large-scale layoff strategies by Thursday, setting up the next phase of Trump's cost-cutting campaign. Several firms have actually used staff members payments to retire early to fulfill Trump's need.
Affected Education Department employees will be put on administrative leave starting on March 21, the department stated.
The union representing more than 2,800 department employees stated it would fight the "oppressive cuts."
"What is clear from the previous weeks of mass firings, turmoil, and unattended unprofessionalism is that this program has no respect for the countless workers who have actually devoted their careers to serve their fellow Americans," said Sheria Smith, president of the American Federation of Government Employees Local 252.
Trump and Musk have argued that the government is wasteful and bloated. DOGE claims it has conserved $105 billion in cuts, however it has only publicly recorded a fraction of those cost savings, and its accounting has been afflicted by errors.
The federal government reported an approximated $162 billion in improper payments in financial year 2024, according to a U.S. Government Accountability Office annual report released on Tuesday. The vast bulk were overpayments, the report said. Total federal outlays topped $6.75 trillion because fiscal year, according to the Congressional Budget Office.
The overall inappropriate payments figure was down sharply from 2023's $236 billion, the GAO stated.
EARLY RETIREMENT OFFERS
Other agencies have actually provided lump-sum payments of approximately $25,000 before tax to employees who consent to leave their jobs. Among these are the Office of Personnel Management, the Social Security Administration and the Department of Health and Human Services, including its Food and Drug Administration.
The buyout offers, integrated with another program that reduces eligibility requirements for early retirement, are being accepted as a lower-friction way to assist satisfy the Thursday deadline, human resources specialists at several federal agencies told Reuters.
The Trump administration has actually been facing myriad claims after it fired countless probationary workers in a very first wave of mass layoffs and basically dismantled entire departments like USAID and CFPB.
The General Services Administration, which manages the government's property portfolio, is also looking for approval to use the buyout payments to workers, according to an e-mail sent out by its acting head to staff on Monday and seen by Reuters. The GSA might not be grabbed remark outside of U.S. business hours. The Securities and Exchange Commission has actually currently used perks of as much as $50,000, Reuters reported.
Personnels and public governance professionals stated the appeal of the buyout program is that it is voluntary and less susceptible to legal challenges. It also needs workers who have accepted the deal to pay back the money if they take another government job within 5 years.
Only a number of agencies have telegraphed the number of staff members they prepare to cut in the second stage of layoffs. These consist of the Department of Veterans Affairs, which is aiming to cut more than 80,000 workers, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which is planning to cut 1,029 personnel.
OPM itself has provided lump-sum payments to some 650 of its staff members, according to another person with knowledge of the matter. Employees were offered till March 12 to react.
On Monday, the HR department of the Food and Drug Administration sent an email to all 19,000 workers revealing a Friday, March 14, deadline for a buyout program. Those who accept would have to retire by April 19.
Late on Monday, HHS sweetened its prior deal by including two months of full pay in addition to the reward, according to a copy of the email seen by Reuters. HHS might not be reached for comment beyond normal U.S. service hours. (Reporting by Timothy Gardner, Alexandra Alper, Tim Reid and Marisa Taylor, extra reporting by Nathan Layne and Kanishka Singh, writing by Nathan Layne and Joseph Ax; Editing by Scott Malone, David Gregorio and Muralikumar Anantharaman)
