At least 20,000 federal employees are said to have voluntarily applied for retirement under President Donald Trump's federal government restructuring policy.
U.S. online media Axios reported on the 4th (local time), citing senior government officials, that approximately 20,000 people have accepted the federal government's "voluntary retirement" offer so far.
Earlier, the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) had notified federal employees via email that it would accept applications for voluntary retirement, allowing immediate exemption from work while maintaining salary and various benefits until September 30.
Those applying for retirement account for about 1% of the total federal workforce, but this falls short of the White House's target restructuring scale of 5% to 10%, and Axios predicted that the number could further increase by the deadline of the 6th.
A government official noted, "Following the inauguration of the Trump administration's second term, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) is significantly being downsized under the Department of State, and the federal government restructuring is underway," adding that, looking at the changes within USAID, this action is just one piece of the puzzle. The official also mentioned that the federal government intends to freeze new employee hires.
Regarding this restructuring effort, employee unions and some organizations have opposed, stating that "the voluntary retirement offer may be illegal, and there is no guarantee of salary payment until September, along with the need for congressional approval."
In response, the Trump administration is asserting the legitimacy of the federal government restructuring, stating that it was part of the president's campaign promise.
Axios analyzed that "the average annual decrease in federal government employees is about 6%" and added that "some of those who chose voluntary retirement may have originally planned to retire."