President Donald Trump has offered buyout packages to almost all federal employees as part of a significant plan to reduce and restructure the US government.
In an email sent on Tuesday, his administration informed workers that they must decide by 6 February whether they want to participate in a “deferred resignation” programme.
If they agree to resign by this date, they can continue to work with full pay until September, according to the email.
The Trump administration expects that up to 10% of employees will accept the offer, which is about 200,000 of the more than two million people employed by the federal government, as reported by the BBC’s US partner, CBS News.
Senior officials from the Trump administration have told the media that the buyouts could save the government as much as $100 billion (£80 billion).
The message from the US Office of Personnel Management (OPM), the government’s human resources agency, outlined planned reforms, including a new rule requiring most employees to work in their offices five days a week.
Since returning to the White House last week, Trump has already announced the end of home-working arrangements introduced during the Covid pandemic.
The OPM stated that the buyout offer is available to “all full-time federal employees,” excluding specific staff such as postal workers, military members, immigration officers, and certain national security personnel.
Employees who want to accept the deal are instructed to reply to the email with the word “resign” in the subject line. The offer includes both pay and benefits until 30 September, and has been described as “very generous” by the White House.
The email also cautioned that future downsizing could affect those who choose to stay. “We cannot give you full assurance regarding the certainty of your position or agency, but should your position be eliminated you will be treated with dignity,” it stated.
Stephen Miller, the White House deputy chief of staff for policy, told CNN that federal workers are “overwhelmingly left of centre” and that it was “essential” for Trump to “take control of government.”
The move has faced criticism. The leader of the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) union said in a statement to US media that this “purging” process would lead to “vast, unintended consequences that will cause chaos for the Americans who depend on a functioning federal government.”
Democratic Senator Tim Kaine also questioned Trump’s authority to make such deals. “If you accept that offer and resign, he’ll stiff you just like he stiffed contractors,” he said. “He doesn’t have any authority to do this. Do not be fooled by this guy.”
The returning US president had repeatedly promised to reduce the size of the government and cut federal spending during his campaign.
He tasked Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy with leading an advisory group focused on reducing regulations, spending, and headcounts within the federal government. Ramaswamy has since left the new Department of Government Efficiency (Doge) to run for governor of Ohio.
However, the email on Tuesday resembled one sent to employees of Twitter, now known as X, in late 2022 after Musk bought the social media platform. Musk asked for an emailed response from employees who wished to stay at the company.
The buyout offer came after a day of confusion in Washington, following a memo Trump issued about pausing federal grants, loans, and other assistance.
A district judge suspended the order, which was set to take effect on Tuesday afternoon, until next Monday.
Before that decision, there was widespread uncertainty about which federal programmes and organisations would be affected. The White House made several attempts to reassure people that Social Security payments and Medicaid access would not be disrupted.
In a letter to the White House, leading Democrats expressed “extreme alarm” about the plan to halt funding.
Also on Tuesday, Trump signed an executive order aimed at restricting young people’s access to gender-related medical treatments.
The order, titled “Protecting Children from Chemical and Surgical Mutilation,” aims to prevent those under 19 from making “life-altering” decisions.
“It is the policy of the United States that it will not fund, sponsor, promote, assist, or support the so-called ‘transition’ of a child from one sex to another,” the order stated.
It is unclear how the order would be implemented and it is expected to face legal challenges.
