Trump Administration Offers 'Fork in the Road' Federal Buyout — 2 Million Civil Servants Offered Deferred Resignation
The Trump administration, through the newly created Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) led by Elon Musk, sends a mass email to approximately 2 million federal employees offering a 'deferred resignation' buyout — eight months of pay and benefits in exchange for immediate resignation. Employees are given one week to decide. The email, titled 'Fork in the Road' — echoing Musk's identical mass email to Twitter employees in 2022 — warns of significant downsizing and relocation requirements. Unions sue immediately, and a federal judge temporarily blocks the buyout plan on February 6, ruling the administration lacks authority to make the offer. Approximately 75,000 federal workers accept the buyout before the court intervenes. The buyout is later reinstated with modifications. The program is widely criticized as an attempt to intimidate federal workers into leaving before Schedule F mass firings begin.
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