13 hours Ago By USA TODAY
Fallout over the Trump administration's federal workforce reduction continued this week as more agencies reported layoffs. President Donald Trump signed an executive order Feb. 11 directing the federal government to implement a "workforce optimization initiative" created by Elon Musk 's Department of Government Efficiency .
Approximately 75,000 federal employees took buyouts before news of layoffs rolled in. Many cuts started with workers in their probationary period as they do not have the ability to appeal their termination, but others have been impacted in the layoffs. While there is no official count of how many workers have been laid off, it could surpass 100,000 workers, as USA TODAY previously reported.
Here is the latest tally of layoffs from the agencies. More than one way to slice a workforce: How Trump's cuts differ from Clinton's Department of Defense The Department of Defense announced Friday, Feb. 21 it planned to reduce its civilian workforce by 5-8% by laying off about 5,400 probationary employees beginning the following week.
The department said it would then enter a hiring freeze while it performs "further analysis of our personnel needs." IRS laying off thousands as tax season ramps up Approximately 6,000 employees at the Internal Revenue Service were set to be laid off starting Thursday, according to Reuters and ABC News . The tax-collecting agency employs approximately 100,000 people.
Department of Homeland Security: TSA firings More than 400 employees, identified as "non-mission critical personnel in probationary status," were fired at the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, according to CBS News and ABC News .
The TSA on Thursday confirmed the terminations of 243 probationary workers who had been either hired or promoted within the year, citing "performance and conduct issues" with the employees during their trial period. Federal Aviation Administration fires hundreds About 400 recently hired support staff employees at the Federal Aviation Administration were fired over the weekend following Feb. 14 as part of the Trump administration's mass terminations of federal workers, according to the union representing the employees.
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau: Layoffs and a court challenge More than 100 employees have been laid off from the CFPB, NPR and Bloomberg Law reported. More layoffs are on hold due to a court challenge. Department of Education: Employees fired, put on leave Termination notices were sent to dozens of probationary employees across multiple work groups, including the offices of general counsel, special education and rehabilitation services, and federal student aid.
Dozens of employees have been put on administrative leave, according to multiple reports, amid the Trump administration's efforts to remove diversity, equity and inclusion positions from the government. President Trump has said he would like to dismantle the Education Department, which employs about 4,400 people, but Congress would need to approve. Department of Energy job cuts include nuclear agency firings As many as 2,000 workers were laid off at the Department of Energy, according to Reuters and ABC News .
Approximately 50 were dismissed from the National Nuclear Security Administration, a reduction from 325 after public outcries over the layoffs at an agency that handles dangerous nuclear materials. You’re ..
.rehired? What we know about who is exempt from Donald Trump's mass firings Department of Health and Human Services: CDC, NIH firings Thousands of probationary employees were fired across the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), according to multiple reports. Roughly 700 workers were let go at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, according to AP and NPR , which is less than the 1,300 cuts that was initially reported.
Workers were also fired at the National Institutes of Health, where more than 1,000 probationary employees were laid off, Reuters reported, citing anonymous sources. Department of the Interior: National Park Service hit with firings At least 2,300 federal workers had their positions terminated. Among them were 800 Bureau of Land Management employees and about 1,000 National Park Service workers.
More: How National Park Service layoffs could stretch some parks to their limits Department of Veterans Affairs: Firings yield $98 million More than 1,000 of the department's about 43,000 probationary employees were terminated, producing an estimated savings of about $98 million, the department said. The Department is now working to reinstate those who worked on a crisis hotline for veterans, according to an X post by Sen. Tammy Duckworth , D-Ill.
Environmental Protection Agency fired, some reportedly reinstated The agency fired 388 employees who were on probationary status "after a thorough review of agency functions in accordance with President Trump’s executive orders," said Jeff Landis, an agency spokesman. Another 171 staffers are on leave who worked on diversity, equity and inclusion and environmental justice, ABC News reported. Some workers at the EPA were reinstated days later, though it is unclear how many, according to reporting by The Boston Globe and Business Insider .
General Services Administration: Agency drops 100-plus workers More than 100 probationary employees at the agency, which manages the nation's real estate portfolio, have received termination letters, Reuters reported . Office of Personnel Management loses dozens of workers Dozens of probationary employees at the agency, which had instructed other federal agencies to let go its probationary employees, also fired dozens of its own workers in a group call, CBS News and CNN reported. Small Business Administration: About 20% of workers fired About 20% of the agency's staff, or about 720 SBA employees, including hundreds of probationary employees, were fired, Politico reported.
U.S. Forest Service: About 3,400 workers fired The agency, which is within the Department of Agriculture, fired about 3,400 probational workers, or nearly 10% of the Forest Service workforce of 35,000 employees .
A source familiar with the cuts told USA TODAY the layoffs do not include firefighters, law enforcement officers, bridge inspectors or meteorologists. More: Trump fires federal workers who help fight forest fires weeks after historic LA blazes United States Agency for International Development (USAID) About 10,000 USAID employees, excluding essential personnel, were placed on administrative as of Feb. 7, and battles over the federal funding freeze are underway in court.
Contributing: Zachary Schermele, Anthony Robledo, Aysha Bagchi, USA TODAY ; Reuters This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Federal layoffs 2025: See impacted agencies, including TSA, NPS, IRS.
