White House Announces Government Employee Job Cuts as Shutdown Approaches Three-Week Mark
The White House confirmed the initiation of federal worker terminations on Friday, making good on prior threats in response to the ongoing federal funding lapse, which is set to extend into its third consecutive week.
Official Announcement and Initial Details
Russell Vought wrote on a public platform that “RIFs have begun,” indicating the government’s procedure for letting employees go.
Although Vought provided no details on which agencies were impacted, a treasury spokesperson confirmed that notices had been issued within that agency. Furthermore, a DHS spokesperson noted that layoffs would also occur at the CISA. Moreover, a labor organization representing federal workers announced that members at the Education Department would be impacted by the staff cuts.
Labor Reaction and Court Actions
Union leaders cautions that the terminations would have “devastating effects” on services relied upon by the public and vowed to contest the moves in court.
This is shameful that the government has exploited the government shutdown as an pretext to wrongfully terminate thousands of workers who deliver essential functions to the public nationwide,” stated Everett Kelley, who leads the AFGE.
The AFL-CIO responded to the news, saying, “Labor organizations will see you in court.”
Political Standoff and Budget Dispute
Congressional Democrats have declined to vote for a GOP-supported bill to reopen the government unless it contains healthcare-centered concessions. Following multiple unsuccessful votes, the GOP leadership in the Senate have put the chamber in recess until the following week, indicating the standoff is unlikely to be ended soon.
At a press conference, the Republican House speaker, Mike Johnson, criticized opposition lawmakers for rejecting the GOP proposal, which passed in the lower chamber on a largely partisan basis.
“This is the last paycheck that government employees will see until Washington Democrats decide to do their job and reopen the government,” the speaker stated. “Starting next week, military personnel, many of whom live on tight budgets, are going to miss a complete payment.”
Judicial and Practical Limits
Previously, labor groups filed for a temporary restraining order to prevent the government from carrying out any layoffs during the shutdown. Additionally, a court official ordered the administration to provide specifics on layoff plans, affected agencies, and whether any government staff had been brought back to carry out staff reductions.
A report argued that a government shutdown limits the authority of the government to conduct terminations, referencing official advice that acknowledged any long-term staff cuts need to have been initiated before the shutdown began.
Consequences for Employees
These terminations occurred on the same day that government employees received only a partial paycheck for the final days of September but excluding the start of October, since appropriations lapsed at the beginning of the month.
Max Stier, the president of the advocacy group, condemned the political stalemate’s impact on government workers.
“It is wrong to make government staff suffer because our elected officials in Congress and the administration have failed to keep our federal operations running,” Stier said. “Our air traffic controllers, VA nurses, wildland firefighters and safety officials are not responsible for this government shutdown.”
The irony is that lawmakers and top administration officials are still receiving salaries amid the funding gap.
