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

March 13 is deadline to send plans for massive layoffs

Workers would get buyout payment of up to $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 agencies are turning to early retirement programs to decrease headcount as they scramble to fulfill President Donald Trump's Thursday due date for them to send plans for a second round of mass layoffs.

The Office of Personnel Management, the Social Security Administration, and the Department of Health and Human Services, including its Food and Drug Administration, are among the companies which have actually used lump-sum payments of approximately $25,000 before tax to workers who concur to leave their tasks.

The buyout uses, combined with another program that reduces eligibility requirements for early retirement, are being embraced as a lower-friction way to assist satisfy the Thursday deadline, human resource professionals at several federal companies informed Reuters.

The Trump administration has actually been coming to grips with myriad suits after it fired countless probationary workers in a first wave of mass layoffs and dismantled whole departments like USAID, the U.S. humanitarian aid firm, and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which protects Americans versus dishonest loan providers.

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

The General Services Administration, which manages the federal government's home portfolio, is also seeking approval to provide the buyout payments to workers, according to an e-mail sent out by its acting head to personnel on Monday and seen by Reuters. The Securities and Exchange Commission has currently provided perks of as much as $50,000, Reuters reported.

Human resource and public governance specialists stated the appeal of the buyout program, called voluntary separation reward payments, is that it is voluntary and less susceptible to legal obstacles. It also needs who have actually accepted the deal to pay back the cash if they take another government task within five years.

"If your method is to get as many individuals out the door voluntarily, that lowers the risk of court orders and opposition to you in the long run," said Don Moynihan, a public law professor at the University of Michigan.

OPM STILL WAITING FOR PLANS

Only a couple of companies have actually telegraphed by means of media leakages the number of workers they prepare to cut in the 2nd stage of layoffs. They consist of the Department of Veterans Affairs, which is aiming to cut more than 80,000 workers, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which is planning to cut 1,029 staff.

Despite the looming due date, no firm has actually yet submitted its job-cutting plan to OPM, the government's personnels department that is collating the information, a person familiar with the matter informed Reuters. OPM decreased to comment.

OPM itself has actually offered lump-sum payments to some 650 OPM staff members, according to another person with knowledge of the matter. Employees were offered until March 12 to respond.

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

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

On March 10, the HR department of the Food and Drug Administration sent an email to all its 19,000 staff members announcing a Friday, March 14, due date to choose into a VSIP. Those who accept would need to retire by April 19.

"There will be no extensions," states the e-mail, examined by Reuters and signed by Tania Tse, director of the FDA's Office of Human Capital Management.

Late on Monday, HHS sweetened its previous VSIP deal by including that workers accepting it would get two months of complete pay in addition to the benefit, according to a copy of the e-mail seen by Reuters.

Steve Lenkart, executive director of the National Federation of Federal Employees, a union which represents 110,000 government workers, said the Trump administration was utilizing "a legitimate program to further damage the abilities of companies to complete their objective."

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