Trump's federal worker resignation offer sparks calls to stand ground
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Illustration: Annelise Capossela/ Axios
President Trump's federal worker resignation offer is meeting vocal resistance in D.C. from lawmakers and employees alike.
Why it matters: The White House expects 5% to 10% of federal employees to accept the offer — potentially hundreds of thousands of people, which the administration claims will save taxpayers billions. But heels are digging in.
Catch up quick: The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) sent a Tuesday-night email blast to all federal workers with a proposition: resign by Feb. 6, and receive pay and benefits through Sept. 30.
- The offer and additional information provided have confused federal workers, raising questions like: Is this really a buyout or will they just be working at home? And does the federal government guarantee they'll keep getting paid?
Between the lines: Trump supporters hyped the plan on social media, including Elon Musk, who shared a post calling it a "paid vacation" and "a fair & generous deal."
- A senior White House official confirmed to Axios that those who take the offer are not expected to keep working.
The other side: Lawmakers were quick to challenge the action. Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) issued a warning from the Senate floor on Tuesday — "Don't be fooled!" — questioning the deal's legality and funding.
- "The president has no authority to make that offer," Kaine said. "There's no budget-line item to pay people who are not showing up for work."
What they're saying: "I don't think many of our people will end up taking these offers," Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) tells Axios. Norton says a federal purge "would have a devastating effect on D.C."
- But "for the buyouts to have any effect, we'd have to see a budget, and we haven't yet."
The intrigue: Popular accounts like Washingtonian Probs circulated worker pushback, including a Reddit thread with nearly 3,000 comments: "This non 'buyout' really seems to have backfired."
- "The best way to stick it to them is to show up like we've been doing. I'm going to keep doing my job until someone drags me out," wrote one Reddit user.
Zoom in: Unions are urging workers to resist. The American Federation of Government Employees, which gained thousands of federal workers last year, warns members against taking the OPM's proposition "at face value," saying the proposal is "riddled with inconsistencies and uncertainties."
Meanwhile, the National Treasury Employees Union, which represents around 150,000 employees over 35 government departments and agencies, says employees should reject the OPM's offer. "It is a bad deal for employees and the American people they serve," NTEU president Doreen Greenwald said in a statement to Axios.
- "We have heard from countless members that they will not be coerced into sacrificing their careers of public service. Anyone who claims taxpayers won't notice if certain government jobs disappear is sorely mistaken."