Trump orders end to remote work, hiring freeze for federal workers
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
President Trump signs executive orders during the inaugural parade inside Capital One Arena in D.C. on Monday. Photo: ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images
President Trump signed executive orders Monday freezing the hiring of federal workers and mandating a full-time return to in-office work for government employees.
Why it matters: On Day 1, Trump is following through on his promise to overhaul the federal government, which employs hundreds of thousands of people in the Washington region.
- He also issued an order that essentially reinstates Schedule F, a move that strips some civil servants of their employment protections.
The big picture: Some of Trump's campaign rhetoric centered on reducing the federal government's footprint by firing "rogue bureaucrats and career politicians" and cutting government spending via the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), led by Elon Musk.
- "Requiring federal employees to come to the office five days a week would result in a wave of voluntary terminations that we welcome," Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, who is stepping aside as DOGE co-lead, wrote last year in a Wall Street Journal opinion piece.
State of play: The hiring freeze applies to all positions in the executive branch except for the military and other categories like national security, public safety and immigration enforcement, per the order.
- No positions that were empty as of noon on Jan. 20 can be filled, and no new positions can be created.
- Trump also directed department and agency heads to take steps to end remote work arrangements "as soon as practicable."
The fine print: The hiring freeze will not "adversely impact the provision of Social Security, Medicare, or Veterans' benefits," the order states.
- That memorandum is set to expire in 90 days after DOGE and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) submit a plan to reduce the government's workforce.
- An exception: The Internal Revenue Service (IRS). It'll remain in effect for the IRS until the Treasury Secretary, along with others, determines that "it is in the national interest to lift the freeze."
Zoom out: Trump signed another order Monday that dismantles some of former President Biden's diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives within the federal government.
- Through Biden's orders, the administration had prioritized recruiting folks from underserved communities, evaluating hiring practices through a diversity lens and addressing pay inequities.
- A Trump official reportedly said more actions on DEI are coming soon that would impact private business.
Go deeper: Trump's renamed Schedule F strips federal worker protections