Recruitment plan will require agencies to hire no more than one employee for every four employees who leave
US President Donald Trump has ordered the heads of federal agencies to start preparing for major layoffs in the latest move of the president to slash the federal workforce.
Trump issued a new executive order mandating agency heads to "undertake preparations to initiate large-scale reductions in force (RIFs)."
He also ordered them to "separate from federal service temporary employees and reemployed annuitants working in areas that will likely be subject to the RIFs."
According to the order, the cuts will focus on offices whose functions are not mandated by law, such as agencies performing diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives.
The Trump government previously put on leave all employees focusing on DEI initiatives as he expressed opposition over such programmes.
His latest order also targets agency initiatives, components, and operations that the administration suspends or closes, as well as employees who are not typically "designated as essential" during a funding lapse, as outlined in the Agency Contingency Plans on the Office of Management and Budget website.
Trump's order also includes the development of a recruitment plan that will require each agency to hire no more than one employee for every four employees that depart.
It also empowers the Department of Government Efficiency, led by Elon Musk, to oversee hiring decisions in the federal workforce.
It states that new career appointment hiring decisions shall be made in consultation with the agency's DOGE Team Lead, who will also provide a monthly hiring report for the agency.
"The agency shall not fill any vacancies for career appointments that the DOGE Team Lead assesses should not be filled, unless the Agency Head determines the positions should be filled," the order read.
The orders do not cover functions related to public safety, immigration enforcement, or law enforcement.
The EO follows Trump's recent resignation offer to government employees, which a judge recently put on hold.
The American Federation of Government Employees, the largest union representing federal workers in the US, slammed Trump's latest order as "reckless and unjustified" in a statement.
"Firing huge numbers of federal employees won't decrease the need for government services," said AFGE National President Everett Kelley in a statement.
"It will just make those services harder or impossible to access for everyday Americans, veterans, and seniors who depend on them."
According to the union, the order is part of Trump and Musk's long line of attacks on the federal workforce.
"Americans just want government to work when they need it. These reckless, unjustified cuts will accomplish only two things: huge tax cuts for Musk and Trump's billionaire buddies and a broken government for the rest of us," Kelley said.
