Trump Administration Offers Buyouts to Nearly All Federal Employees

Buyouts were predicted in a recent FedSmith article. They occurred faster than expected. Here is more information.

Buyouts for Federal Employees

A short time ago, FedSmith published an article Is There a Buyout in Your Future and Will You Take It?. While the article predicted the federal government would be issuing a buyout for federal employees, a buyout offer has appeared quicker than expected.

The Trump administration has openly advocated reducing the size of the federal workforce. If any employees doubted his sincerity, that has been put to rest.

Buyout Offer May Be in Your (Email) Mailbox: Full Pay While On Administrative Leave

OPM is referring to this program as a “Deferred Resignation Program.” Employees must resign by February 6th to take advantage of the offer. Employees who accept the terms are also offered the chance to stay on administrative leave through September 30, 2025, and will still receive their federal salary. The offer was apparently sent out through a new email system set up by the Trump administration that enables communicating directly with all federal employees.

With regard to the buyout, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said:

American taxpayers pay for the salaries of federal government employees, and therefore deserve employees working on their behalf who actually show up to work in our wonderful federal buildings, also paid for by taxpayers. If they don’t want to work in the office and contribute to making America great again, then they are free to choose a different line of work, and the Trump Administration will provide a very generous payout of 8 months.

Many federal employees will jump at the chance to leave government service. The federal workforce is older and has fewer younger employees than most private sector companies. This means that many federal employees are eligible to retire or getting close to the time when they can retire.

On top of that, numerous federal employees have complained about returning to in-office work. For those who are really unhappy about that prospect, being able to quit their job with the possibility of collecting about eight months of their salary makes the offer very attractive.

As noted above, OPM is also adding an incentive to make leaving federal work even more attractive by being able to work from home for some time for employees who opt to resign:

If you resign under this program, you will retain all pay and benefits regardless of your daily workload and will be exempted from all applicable in-person work requirements until September 30.

OPM also published a list of frequently asked questions about the deferred resignation offer.

It is not accidental that September 30 is at the end of the government’s fiscal year. Having these employees leave federal service will provide some bragging rights for the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).

According to NBC News, White House officials estimated that 5% – 10% of the workforce would resign. They estimated this will create about $100 billion in cost savings.

Buyout Not Applicable for All Feds

This buyout will not be open to all federal employees. Military personnel will not be able to use this offer. It also does not apply to the Postal Service, immigration enforcement, national security positions or other jobs specifically excluded by their agency according to an email sent to federal employees.

Union Reaction to Buyout

American Federal of Government Employees (AFGE) President Everett Kelley issued the following statement regarding the buyout:

The number of civil servants hasn’t meaningfully changed since 1970, but there are more Americans than ever who rely on government services. Purging the federal government of dedicated career federal employees will have vast, unintended consequences that will cause chaos for the Americans who depend on a functioning federal government. This offer should not be viewed as voluntary. Between the flurry of anti-worker executive orders and policies, it is clear that the Trump administration’s goal is to turn the federal government into a toxic environment where workers cannot stay even if they want to.

About the Author

Ralph Smith has several decades of experience working with federal human resources issues. He has written extensively on a full range of human resources topics in books and newsletters and is a co-founder of two companies and several newsletters on federal human resources. Follow Ralph on Twitter: @RalphSmith47