What to know about the federal workforce under Trump

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February 13th, 2025

Carrie Muniak joins a rally in front of the Office of Personnel Management, Monday, Feb. 3, 2025, in Washington. President Donald Trump is relying on a relatively obscure federal agency to reshape government. The Office of Personnel Management was created in 1979 by President Jimmy Carter and is the equivalent of the government's human resources department. It helps manage the civil service, including pay schedules, health insurance and pension programs. The agency has offered millions of federal workers eight months of salary if they voluntarily choose to leave their jobs by Feb. 6. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

Since President Donald Trump began his second term last month, he has focused on dramatically reducing the federal workforce at a breakneck pace.

From dismantling the U.S. Agency for International Development to offering a mass deferred resignation plan, Trump’s Republican administration has released executive orders and memos aimed at substantially reshaping the size of government and where its employees work.

Many of Trump’s orders have been met with legal hurdles, leaving some workers confused about their future and the deferred resignation offer, commonly described as a buyout.

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