The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) issued a memorandum detailing a new initiative offering buyouts to federal employees as part of the Trump White House’s government downsizing effort. The memo outlines that employees who voluntarily resign by February 6, 2025, will receive approximately seven months’ salary as an incentive. This move is aimed at reducing the federal workforce and is part of broader restructuring plans.
It’s worth noting the memo exempts immigration and national security workers from the buy-out options, signaling a shifting emphasis to the national security workforce despite overall government worker drawdowns. The memo also gives a wide interpretation for agencies to exempt its own employees from the buy out option based on agency discretion.
The memo specifically outlines steps the new Administration is planning to take which may not be palatable to government employees, including a return to physical offices five days per week. It emphasized that the government was putting a renewed focus on ‘excellence’ from within the federal workforce, and would be reconsidering suitability requirements in the months to come.
The voluntary buy-outs offer comes as federal agencies were already working to adhere to other aspects of Trump’s executive actions over the federal workforce, specifically reclassifying federal workers into Schedule F positions, which would effectively remove many of the civil service protections these positions held.
The current government-wide push to reduce the size of the federal workforce is significant, but it’s not the first time the government has offered high cash incentives in order to downsize. Voluntary Separation Incentive Payments (VSIP), have been used by various administrations to encourage voluntary separations and reduce the federal workforce. During the 1990s, the government offered buyouts to downsize following the end of the Cold War. In the early 2000s, buyouts were used to restructure agencies and manage budget constraints.
While national security workers may be exempt from the ‘reply to resign’ plan, individuals should continue to pay close attention to the latest agency guidance.
For more detailed information, you can refer to the official OPM guidance.
