President Trump Fires Thousands of Government Workers After Buyout Offer Expires

Shortly after the deadline passed on President Donald Trump’s offer of an 8-month buyout for all federal employees, the White House fired several thousand more federal workers over the weekend.

According to the Epoch Times, the firings occurred across numerous federal agencies, including the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), among many others.

A spokesman for the EPA confirmed that the agency “terminated 388 probationary employees after a thorough review of agency functions in accordance with President Trump’s executive orders.”

At least 1,165 employees of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), which is overseen by HHS, were also fired, according to an internal email. Hundreds more were fired by the FAA, according to a statement from the Professional Aviation Safety Specialists (PASS) union.

Senator Patty Murray (D-Wash.) additionally confirmed that over 1,800 employees at the Department of Energy had been fired. The Department of Education confirmed in an internal letter that 160 newly-hired employees were laid off.

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), widely criticized as one of the most inefficient and unpopular agencies, also fired over 1,000 employees.

The mass federal layoffs fulfill yet another campaign pledge by President Trump, who vowed to drastically reduce the size of the federal government by firing workers whose jobs were determined to be unnecessary or redundant, as well as abolish entire agencies. The Trump Administration has particularly targeted the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Department of Education for elimination.

Shortly after he returned to office, President Trump made an extraordinary buyout offer to all federal employees across every agency. Known as the “Fork in the Road” initiative, the plan offered up to 8 months of paid vacation in exchange for the employee’s immediate resignation. After a brief legal battle extended the deadline, a judge ultimately ruled in favor of the buyout’s legality. The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) then confirmed that the offer officially expired on Wednesday, after over 75,000 federal employees had accepted it.