WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The Trump administration ramped up pressure on U.S. government workers on Thursday to accept a buyout offer ahead of a midnight deadline as labor unions urged members to remain in their jobs and sought to block the proposal in court.
In emails sent out on Thursday, the administration emphasized that the offer expires at 11:59 p.m. Eastern time (0459 GMT) and told workers that those who do not accept it could still lose their jobs.
“At this time, we cannot give you full assurance regarding the certainty of your position,” the message read, according to a copy seen by Reuters.
President Donald Trump’s unprecedented drive to drastically cut the U.S. civil service has roiled Washington, sparking street protests and raising legal questions over whether he is overstepping his powers as president.
Unions representing federal workers have warned members that the “deferred resignation program” may violate multiple laws and have sued to block it. A federal judge is due to consider their request at 1 p.m. Eastern time (1800 GMT).
More than 40,000 federal employees had accepted the buyout offer as of Wednesday night, according to a source, although Reuters was not able to independently verify that number. That represents about 2% of the federal government’s 2.3 million civilian workforce.
The offer promises to pay their salaries until October, but it may not be ironclad. The Education Department told staffers who accept it that their paychecks could stop at any time, media outlets reported.
The buyout encompasses not only employees at domestic agencies like the Environmental Protection Agency that have traditionally drawn the ire of Trump’s Republicans, but intelligence agencies like the CIA as well.
Air traffic controllers at the understaffed Federal Aviation Administration are exempt, and some at the Internal Revenue Service will not be eligible until May 15, after the busy tax-filing season, according to a message to staff seen by Reuters.
MUSK SPEARHEADING EFFORTS
Trump has made his South African-born billionaire adviser Elon Musk, the world’s richest person, a “special government employee” and tasked him with overseeing a sweeping effort to remake the government.
Musk’s Department of Government Efficient is a quasi-governmental office operating out of the White House. His actions appear to go beyond the executive orders signed by Trump governing the office. The wording of those had suggested a more advisory role for Musk, at odds with his current activism.
Musk and his aides have moved rapidly, turning up at agencies throughout Washington to demand access to sensitive information, including personnel files. Their efforts have resulted in purges of staff in several departments and a significant scaling down of operations of America’s main humanitarian aid agency, the U.S. Agency for International Development.
CLIMATE OF FEAR
While some people, including Democratic lawmakers, have taken to the streets to protest, inside the agencies federal workers are operating in a climate of fear and uncertainty.
“The mood is nobody is coming to save us,” said an employee at the General Services Agency, which manages federal properties, adding that some managers had broken down in tears on phone calls with staff.
At the Department of Health and Human Services “everyone is stressed and frustrated,” said a worker, who also spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation.
More cuts are likely. One source at the Office of Personnel Management said officials upped their demand for layoffs on Wednesday from 30% to 70% of all staff.
The White House says it is following through on Trump’s campaign promise to cut wasteful spending and slim down a bureaucracy that many conservatives see as left-leaning and unresponsive to the president’s agenda.
OPTIONS TO CUT BUDGET LIMITED
Musk has vowed to slash the $6.7 trillion federal budget, but his options are limited by Trump’s vow to protect the popular Social Security and Medicare retirement and health benefit programs, which account for roughly one-third of spending and are projected to grow dramatically as the population ages.
Democrats say the effort is illegal, as the U.S. Constitution gives Congress authority over spending matters.
Republican lawmakers, who control both chambers of Congress, have cheered the effort, and Democrats have been unable to stop it.
All 47 Democrats in the Senate are expected on Thursday to vote against confirming Trump’s pick for White House budget chief, Russell Vought, but he is still expected to win confirmation with support from the chamber’s 53 Republicans.
(Reporting by Tim Reid, Alexandra Ulmer, Ned Parker, Nathan Layne and Andy Sullivan; Editing by Ross Colvin, Noeleen Walder, Leslie Adler and Mark Porter)
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