The White House announces layoffs of federal workers as the shutdown approaches a third week | 2025 US Federal Government Shutdown

The White House announced layoffs of federal workers on Friday, fulfilling a threat it made in response to the US government shutdown, which now appears set to extend for a third straight week.

Russell Vought, director of the White House Office of Management and Budget, wrote on social media that “the RIFs have kicked in,” referring to the government’s actions to reduce the force to let staff go.

While Vaught did not provide any details on the departments and agencies where the layoffs were made, a Treasury spokesperson said notices had been distributed within the department. A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson told The Guardian that layoffs will also occur at the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency. A union representing federal workers confirmed that Education Department members would also be affected by the reduction in force.

Union leaders warned that layoffs would have “devastating effects” on services that millions of Americans rely on, and vowed to challenge the moves in court.

“It is outrageous that the Trump administration used the government shutdown as an excuse to illegally fire thousands of workers who provide vital services to communities across the country,” said Everett Kelly, national president of the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), which represents 800,000 state and federal government employees.

Vaught had warned that federal agencies might cut jobs if the government shuts down, but the Trump administration largely held back after funding expired last week. When asked at a news conference before Vaught’s announcement why no layoffs had occurred, John Thune, the Senate’s top Republican, indicated that would happen soon.

“The White House has now stopped for 10 days from doing anything in hopes that enough Democrats in the Senate will come to their senses and do the right thing and fund the government,” he said.

“My expectation is, yes, they will start making some decisions about how to move money, which agencies and departments will be affected, which programs will be affected, which employees will be affected. And that’s what a shutdown does.”

AFL-CIO, the largest federation of labor unions in the United States, He responded “US unions will see you in court,” Foote posted on Friday.

Last week, AFGE and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) filed a temporary restraining order to prevent the Trump administration from implementing any reductions in force (RIFs) during the shutdown. The unions filed an emergency request for a temporary restraining order on Friday, after Foote’s involvement.

“These mass layoffs are unlawful and will have devastating effects on the services that millions of Americans depend on every day,” said Lee Saunders, President of AFSCME. “Whether it’s food inspectors, public safety workers, or the countless other public servants who keep America going, federal employees should not be a bargaining chip in this administration’s political games.”

“By illegally firing these workers, the Administration is not only targeting federal employees, it is harming their families and the communities they serve every day. We will pursue every legal avenue available to stop this Administration’s unlawful attacks on the freedoms and jobs of public service employees.”

Democrats in Congress refused to vote for a Republican-backed bill to restore funding unless it included a package of health care-focused benefits. After seven unsuccessful votes on spending bills put forward by the parties, Republican leaders in the Senate decided to suspend the chamber until next Tuesday, meaning the crisis is unlikely to be resolved before then.

The layoffs came on the same day that government employees received only a partial salary covering the last days of September but not the beginning of October, as appropriations had lapsed at the beginning of the month.

In a news conference Friday morning, Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson criticized Senate Democrats for not supporting the GOP bill, which passed the House on a close party-line vote. If the government does not reopen by next Wednesday, US military personnel are set to lose their pay.

“This is the last paycheck 700,000 federal workers will receive until Democrats in Washington decide to do their job and reopen the government,” Johnson said.

“Starting next week, America’s military service members, many of whom live paycheck to paycheck, will lose a full paycheck. If Democrats don’t end this shutdown by Monday, the October 15 date will pass us by.”

Johnson kept the House out of session throughout the shutdown in an attempt to pressure Senate Democrats to support the Republican funding proposal. Earlier this week, a group of Democrats in the House of Representatives sent a letter to the Speaker of the House asking him to allow a vote on legislation ensuring that US troops are paid during the shutdown, but Johnson refused to send lawmakers back to Washington.

The Senate has become a choke point in the funding battle because any legislation needs at least 60 votes to advance in the chamber. In exchange for their support, Senate Democrats are demanding that premium tax breaks for health plans under the Affordable Care Act be extended beyond their expiration date at the end of the year.

They are also seeking safeguards against Donald Trump’s rescission of funding approved by Congress, restoring funds for public media, and reversing cuts to the Medicaid health care program for poor and disabled Americans.

Max Steyer, president and CEO of the nonprofit Partnership for Public Service, condemned the impact of the gridlock on government employees.

“It is wrong to make federal employees suffer because our leaders in Congress and the White House have failed to keep our government open and functioning,” Stier said.

“Air traffic controllers, VA nurses, and food inspectors are not responsible for this government shutdown, nor should they bear the financial burden caused by the failures of our elected officials. The irony is that members of Congress and senior White House leaders are still getting paid.”

Earlier this week, on October 7, a federal judge commander The Trump administration is due to provide details on the status of any layoff plans, which agencies are affected and whether any federal employees have been called back to work to implement the layoffs, by Friday, October 10.

A a report The Center for American Progress claimed on September 30 that the government shutdown limits the Trump administration’s ability to implement layoffs, citing guidance from the Office of Management and Budget that recognized any permanent layoffs must begin before the shutdown begins.

“Restrictions on permanently dismissing federal employees during a shutdown exist largely because… Anti-deficiency law “And distinguish between ‘shutdown furloughs’ that occur during interruptions in congressional appropriations and ‘administrative furloughs,’ which are administration and agency actions on how to let employees go permanently, including — for example — through a RIF,” says the report, written by Greta Bedekovich, associate director for democracy policy at the Center for American Progress. “The Trump administration’s threats to lay off employees must be understood The Feds are a target for the administration. Which will be pursued with or without a government shutdown, and should not drive lawmakers’ decisions on whether to support government funding bills.

Shri Popat contributed additional reporting