Thousands of federal workers have accepted the Trump administration’s buyout offer — taking eight months’ pay and benefits in exchange for walking away from the government workforce, The Post has learned.
Employees have until Thursday to decide whether to accept the offer, which the White House hopes will reduce the federal payroll by between 5% and 10%.
Axios first reported Tuesday that close to 20,000 federal workers had accepted the offer, an amount representing less than 1% of government personnel.
“I can tell you the 20K number isn’t current, the number of deferred resignations is rapidly growing, and we’re expecting the largest spike 24 to 48 hours before the deadline,” a White House official told The Post.
The buyout offer is believed to apply to at least 2.3 million federal employees.
If the administration reaches its goal of 5% to 10% of the federal workforce accepting the offer, it believes that could save taxpayers close to $100 billion.
On average, the federal attrition rate for workers is about 6% annually. It is not fully clear how many of those individuals who took the buyout planned to depart their role regardless.
Tech magnate Elon Musk, who helms the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), had repeatedly dangled the possibility of a buyout offer during the tail end of the 2024 campaign and in the weeks that followed.
In partnership with Musk, President Trump has been keen to dramatically revamp the federal government to shrink its size and scope.
Critics have questioned whether the buyout offers are even legal, contending that Congress would have had to sign off on such a dramatic employee reduction.
Public sector unions have advised their members against accepting the buyout.
“Employees should not take the Program at face value,” the American Federation of Government Employees, the biggest federal union, warned its membership.
“It is also unclear whether OPM [Office of Personnel Management] has the legal authority to support the Program or its alleged benefits, and the eligibility criteria are vague.”
