Memo Outlines Plan to Cut Around 80K VA Employees 

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Memo Outlines Plan to Cut Around 80K VA Employees 

A reduction in force memo from the VA has outlined plans to return that workforce to its 2019 force level of around 400,000 employees, representing a total cut of around 80,000 workers.

“VA, in partnership with our DOGE leads, will move out aggressively, while taking a pragmatic and disciplined approach to identify and eliminate waste, reduce management and bureaucracy, reduce footprint, and increase workforce efficiency,” said the internal memo dated March 4, adding that some of the savings would be reinvested. Follow link to read more from FEDweek. https://www.fedweek.com/fedweek/memo-outlines-plan-to-cut-around-80k-va-employees/

OPM’s Goals and Procedures for Agency RIFs

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OPM’s Goals and Procedures for Agency RIFs

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) has laid out goals and procedures for agency Reductions in Force (RIFs). The guidance is part of the President’s “Department of Government Efficiency” Workforce Optimization Initiative. Here are some key points:

  1. Goals:
    • Better service for the American people.
    • Increased productivity.
    • Significant reduction in the number of full-time equivalent (FTE) positions by eliminating non-essential positions.
    • Reduced real property footprint.
    • Reduced budget topline. 1,2
  1. Procedures:
    • Agencies should focus on eliminating functions that are not statutorily mandated while ensuring efficient delivery of required functions.
    • Consolidate duplicative areas and management layers.
    • Implement technological solutions to automate routine tasks.
    • Close or consolidate regional field offices where consistent with efficient service delivery.
    • Reduce the use of outside consultants and contractors. 1,2

For more detailed information, you can check out the OPM’s official page on RIFs.

  1. opm.gov
  2. fedweek.com

A Pair Of House Bills Aim To Give Fired Feds Relief 

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A Pair Of House Bills Aim To Give Fired Feds Relief 

Legislation from Reps. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, D-Fla., and Derek Tran, D-Calif., seeks to secure benefits for federal employees recently fired by the Trump administration and help get some of their jobs back.

As reports of firings and reductions in force continue to emerge from agencies across the federal government, a legislative push back on Capitol Hill has commenced.

A pair of bills from Reps. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, D-Fla., and Derek Tran, D-Calif., introduced on Feb. 26, aim to provide some relief for federal employees recently let go by the Trump administration, albeit with different focuses. Follow link to read more from Government Executive. https://www.govexec.com/pay-benefits/2025/03/pair-house-bills-aim-give-fired-feds-relief/403457/

RIF Watch: See Which Agencies Are Laying Off Federal Workers 

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RIF Watch: See Which Agencies Are Laying Off Federal Workers 

Here are the agencies where we have confirmed layoffs have taken or are about to take place. We will update as we learn more. 

The Trump administration has given agencies a March 13 deadline to finalize their plans to slash their workforces through layoffs.

Not all agencies are waiting that long, however, and some have either already started sending out reduction-in-force notices or have explained their plans to do so. The upcoming layoffs are separate from the mass firings of probationary employees, which led to the removal of at least 25,000 workers. See our tracker of those firings here. Follow link to read full article from Government Executive. https://www.govexec.com/workforce/2025/02/rif-watch-see-which-agencies-are-laying-federal-workers/403342/?oref=ge-skybox-post

Federal Hiring Is Nearly Frozen. For Those Who Can Hire, A New Roadblock Has Emerged

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Federal Hiring Is Nearly Frozen. For Those Who Can Hire, A New Roadblock Has Emerged

The Department of Veterans Affairs building in Washington, DC in a 2024 file photo. While the giant agency has been exempt from the federal hiring freeze, changes to federal hiring software have made it almost impossible for the department to bring on new hires for urgently-needed medical positions.

The Trump administration is moving at lightning speed to shrink the federal government and freeze federal hiring.

The biggest barrier, according to an OPM official, congressional staffers, VA employees, and veterans’ organizations is that human resources officials across the federal government can no longer access their own new hire records without approval from senior leadership at the Office of Personnel Management (OPM).

Follow link to read more from KPBS via NPR. https://www.kpbs.org/news/national/2025/03/05/federal-hiring-is-nearly-frozen-for-those-who-can-hire-a-new-roadblock-has-emerged