Washington, D.C. — October 11, 2025 — The Trump administration has launched a wave of layoffs targeting thousands of federal employees across multiple agencies, escalating tensions in the 11th day of a partial government shutdown triggered by partisan deadlock over federal funding. The moves, described by White House officials as necessary fiscal adjustments during the lapse in appropriations, have drawn sharp condemnation from Democrats and labor unions as politically motivated retribution.
The layoffs, formally known as "reductions in force" (RIFs), were publicly confirmed Friday by Russell Vought, director of the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB). In a post on X, Vought declared, "The RIFs have begun," signaling the start of what an OMB spokesperson called "substantial" workforce reductions. A senior administration official later told NBC News that the initial figures represent "a snapshot in time" based on a court filing, with further actions possible as the shutdown persists.
According to a Justice Department filing submitted Friday in response to a lawsuit by the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) and the AFL-CIO, more than 4,000 workers across seven agencies have received RIF notices. The Treasury Department and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) bore the brunt, accounting for over half of the total with approximately 1,446 and 1,100–1,200 notices, respectively. Other impacted agencies include Homeland Security (176 employees), Education (466), Energy (187), Housing and Urban Development, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA, with 20–30 general notices), and Commerce (315, including 126 at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office from earlier in the shutdown).
President Donald Trump has long advocated for shrinking the federal bureaucracy, a priority amplified this year through the Department of Government Efficiency initiative, which has already led to tens of thousands of dismissals. In remarks Friday, Trump described the layoffs as a "lot" of necessary cuts, framing the shutdown as leverage against Democrats to secure broader spending reductions. The administration maintains that the funding lapse legally justifies the actions, separate from the roughly 750,000 furloughs already in effect.
Agency spokespeople defended the targeted cuts as reforms. At the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), layoffs focused on the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), which a spokesperson accused of prioritizing "censorship, branding, and electioneering" under the prior Biden administration. An HHS official echoed this, citing efforts to eliminate a "bloated bureaucracy" at odds with the "Make America Healthy Again" agenda, including duplicative entities from the Biden era. At the EPA, cuts reportedly hit programs on recycling, composting, and plastics reduction, prompting union leaders to warn of risks to public health and safety.
Democrats and unions decried the layoffs as unlawful and vindictive. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer called them "deliberate chaos," arguing that a shutdown does not grant the president authority to fire workers or withhold back pay. AFGE President Everett Kelley labeled the firings "disgraceful" and a threat to critical services, while AFSCME President Lee Saunders vowed to "pursue every available legal avenue" to halt them. The unions' Friday motion sought an immediate temporary restraining order, citing Vought's X post as evidence of premeditation; a federal judge is set to hear arguments on October 15.
The shutdown, the 11th in modern U.S. history, stems from Congress's failure to pass a continuing resolution (CR) before fiscal year funding expired on October 1. Republicans passed a clean CR in the House on September 19 extending funding through November 21, but Democrats blocked it in the Senate, demanding extensions of Affordable Care Act premium tax credits, reversals of Medicaid cuts, restored funding for public media, and limits on Trump's "pocket rescissions" authority. Trump has hinted at compromise on healthcare subsidies but insists on deeper cuts to "Democrat agencies" and DEI initiatives, freezing billions in projects for Democratic-leaning states like New York and California.
Even some Republicans, including Sen. Susan Collins, have voiced unease, emphasizing the vital role of federal workers. As negotiations stall, the White House's "shutdown clock" website continues to tally impacts, with no resolution in sight. Military personnel remain funded, but non-essential services—from national parks to grant programs—face indefinite disruptions.
