DONALD Trump is offering millions of federal employees a golden parachute to quit their jobs, as his administration pushes to crack down on “woke” officials.
The White House has proposed a buyout package for almost all federal workers who don’t want to return to the office, offering them eight months’ salary if they resign by February 6.
The Trump team predicts that up to 10 per cent of the federal workforce — around 200,000 employees — could take the deal.
This could be potentially saving the government up to $100 billion, according to CBS News.
Trump has long vowed to gut what he calls the bloated federal workforce.
His new Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) — led by Elon Musk— has been tasked with slashing regulations, cutting spending, and reducing government jobs.
The offer bears a striking resemblance to Musk’s approach after taking over Twitter– now X – when he asked employees to confirm their commitment or leave with severance.
Musk seemed to acknowledge the parallel, posting a photo of a giant fork sculpture with the caption: “Fork in the Road.”
A mass email, sent out by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) on Tuesday, laid out the terms of the offer, calling it a “deferred resignation program”.
Employees who accept will be placed on paid administrative leave through September 30, with full pay and benefits.
But the message also contained a stark warning for those who refuse: “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.”
Federal workers who want to take the buyout were instructed to reply to the email with the single word: “resign.”
Postal workers, military personnel, immigration officials, and some national security employees were exempt from the offer.
TRUMP’S WAR ON BUREAUCRACY
DOGE official Katie Miller confirmed that the email went out to two million workers, marking the biggest government downsizing effort in modern history.
Trump’s return-to-office mandate has already sparked pushback from federal employees, many of whom have been working remotely since the COVID-19 pandemic.
The president’s executive order demands a full five-day return to the office — whether employees like it or not.
“This is about fairness,” Musk posted on X.
“It’s not fair that most people have to come to work while federal employees get to stay home.”
BLUE BACKLASH
Unions and Democrats have slammed the move as a thinly veiled effort to replace career civil servants with Trump loyalists.
“The number of civil servants hasn’t meaningfully changed since 1970, but there are more Americans than ever who rely on government services,” said Everett Kelley, president of the American Federation of Government Employees.
“Purging the federal government of dedicated career employees will have vast, unintended consequences.”
Congressman Gerry Connolly, the ranking Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, called it a “trick” to install partisan hacks.
“Donald Trump is trying every trick he and his Project 2025 cronies can think of to circumvent established civil service protections so they can purge the civil service of experts and replace them with political loyalists,” he said.
With just days left until the February 6 deadline, federal employees are facing a tough choice — stay and risk layoffs, or take the money and run.
LOANS FREEZE
The buyout email wasn’t the only bombshell from Trump’sWhite House on Tuesday.
A federal judge temporarily blocked Trump’s freeze on federal grants and loans, an order that sparked mass confusion over which government programs would be affected.
The White House scrambled to reassure Americans that Social Security and Medicaid would not be disrupted.
Meanwhile, Trump also signed a controversial executive order banning gender transition treatments for minors, titled “Protecting Children from Chemical and Surgical Mutilation.”
The order states that the U.S. will not “fund, sponsor, promote, assist, or support” medical transition for those under 19.
But legal experts say the measure is almost certain to face court challenges.
DIVERSITY OFFICERS AXED
The buyouts also follow Trump’s shutdown of all federal diversity offices — a move that put thousands of DEI (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility) employees on paid leave last Wednesday.
An internal White House memo ordered that “all employees of DEIA offices… be placed on paid administrative leave effective immediately as the agency takes steps to close/end all DEIA initiatives, offices, and programs.”
Trump has long railed against diversity policies, claiming they discriminate against white men.
“The Biden administration forced illegal and immoral discrimination programs, going by the name ‘diversity, equity, and inclusion’ (DEI), into virtually all aspects of the federal government,” he said in an executive order last week.
Trump also used executive action to curb transgender rights, signing a directive stating: “It is the policy of the United States to recognize two sexes, male and female. These sexes are not changeable and are grounded in fundamental and incontrovertible reality.”
He has also vowed to ban transgender women from competing in men’s sports, doubling down on his long-standing opposition to their inclusion.
