Agencies utilizing lump-sum payments, early retirement program to cut federal employees

March 13 is deadline to send plans for massive layoffs

Workers would receive buyout payment of approximately $25,000

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Buyout program less susceptible to legal obstacle

By Alexandra Alper, Tim Reid, Marisa Taylor and Nathan Layne

March 11 (Reuters) - Multiple federal government firms are turning to early retirement programs to reduce headcount as they rush to satisfy President Donald Trump's Thursday deadline for them to send prepare for a 2nd round of mass layoffs.

The Office of Personnel Management, the Social Security Administration, and the Department of Health and Human Services, including its Fda, are amongst the agencies which have used lump-sum payments of up to $25,000 before tax to workers who consent to leave their jobs.

The buyout uses, combined with another program that alleviates eligibility requirements for early retirement, are being accepted as a lower-friction method to help meet the Thursday deadline, personnel professionals at a number of federal agencies told Reuters.

The Trump administration has actually been grappling with myriad claims after it fired thousands of probationary employees in a first wave of mass layoffs and dismantled whole departments like USAID, the U.S. humanitarian help firm, and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which protects Americans against unethical lenders.

All U.S. federal government firms have been ordered to come up with large-scale layoff plans by Thursday as part of Trump's unmatched campaign to overhaul the government. Among his leading advisors, the tech billionaire Elon Musk, is leading that effort with his so-called Department of Government Efficiency.

The General Services Administration, which handles the government's home portfolio, is also looking for approval to provide the buyout payments to workers, according to an email sent out by its acting head to staff on Monday and seen by Reuters. The Securities and Exchange Commission has actually already offered bonuses of as much as $50,000, Reuters reported.

Personnel and public governance professionals said the appeal of the buyout program, called voluntary separation incentive payments, is that it is voluntary and less susceptible to legal obstacles. It likewise requires workers who have accepted the deal to repay the cash if they take another government job within five years.

"If your technique is to get as many individuals out the door voluntarily, that reduces the danger of court orders and opposition to you in the long run," stated Don Moynihan, a public law teacher at the University of Michigan.

OPM STILL WAITING FOR PLANS

Only a couple of agencies have actually telegraphed by means of media leaks how numerous employees they prepare to cut in the 2nd phase of layoffs. They include the Department of Veterans Affairs, which is aiming to cut more than 80,000 employees, and the National Oceanic and Administration, which is preparing to cut 1,029 personnel.

Despite the looming due date, no company has yet sent its job-cutting strategy to OPM, the government's human resources department that is looking at the information, a person familiar with the matter informed Reuters. OPM decreased to comment.

OPM itself has actually provided lump-sum payments to some 650 OPM workers, according to another individual with understanding of the matter. Employees were given up until March 12 to respond.

At the General Services Administration, staff members were informed on Monday that OPM had actually greenlit a plan to provide an early retirement program to all qualified workers.

"I encourage each of you to consider your options as we move forward," GSA Acting Administrator Stephen Ehikian composed in an e-mail seen by Reuters. "The brand-new GSA will be slimmer, more effective and laser-focused on performance and high-value results."

On March 10, the HR department of the Food and Drug Administration sent out an e-mail to all its 19,000 employees revealing a Friday, March 14, deadline to opt into a VSIP. Those who accept would need to retire by April 19.

"There will be no extensions," mentions the email, evaluated by Reuters and signed by Tania Tse, director of the FDA's Office of Human Capital Management.

Late on Monday, HHS sweetened its prior VSIP offer by adding that employees accepting it would get 2 months of complete pay in addition to the bonus offer, according to a copy of the email seen by Reuters.

Steve Lenkart, executive director of the National Federation of Federal Employees, a union which represents 110,000 government employees, said the Trump administration was utilizing "a genuine program to additional damage the capabilities of agencies to complete their objective."

OPM declined to react to Lenkart's comments. (Reporting by Alexandra Alper, Tim Reid, Marisa Taylor and Nathan Layne; Editing by Ross Colvin and Daniel Wallis)