The U.S. Department of Education on Tuesday said it will reduce its workforce by about half.
Secretary of Education Linda McMahon said the impacted staff will be placed on administrative leave beginning Friday, March 21, according to a press release.
“Today’s reduction in force reflects the Department of Education’s commitment to efficiency, accountability, and ensuring that resources are directed where they matter most: to students, parents and teachers,” said McMahon.
The DOE said the staff reduction will not affect formula funding, student loans, Pell Grants, funding for special needs students and competitive grantmaking.
When President Trump was inaugurated, the DOE workforce stood at 4,133 workers; after the reduction, there will be about 2,183 workers, the press release said.
Included in the reduction are nearly 600 employees who accepted voluntary resignation opportunities and retirement over the last seven weeks, including 259 employees who accepted the Deferred Resignation Program and 313 employees accepted the Voluntary Separation Incentive Payment.
Remaining employees impacted by the reduction will be placed on administrative leave. Pursuant to regulatory requirements and the collective bargaining agreement, all impacted employees will receive full pay and benefits until June 9, as well as severance pay or retirement benefits based upon their length of service.
Senator Bill Cassidy (R-La), chairman of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, said he had spoken with McMahon and was assured the department would still fulfill its statutory obligations, according to the New York Times.
Sheria Smith, president of the American Federation of Government Employees Local 252, criticized the administration’s decision, citing its disrespect for federal workers.
The department’s Office for Civil Rights in New York, San Francisco and Boston were severely affected by the cuts, which have now compounded challenges from the Biden administration, including staff shortages and backlog issues, the paper reported.
Smith vowed to fight the cuts. “We will not stand idly by while this regime pulls the wool over the eyes of the American people,” she said.
Becky Pringle, president of the National Education Association, the nation’s largest teachers union, said the cuts would affect students, drain job training programs and increase higher education costs, the newspaper said.
Project 2025, a conservative policy roadmap for Trump’s second term, includes a detailed plan to dismantle the Education Department, shifting responsibilities across multiple federal agencies. Under the plan, the Treasury Department would handle student aid, the Labor Department would oversee vocational education and the Health and Human Services Department would manage disability education programs.
Before the dismissals were officially announced, a group of former employees gathered outside the department’s Washington headquarters to protest the layoffs.
