5 things to watch as the federal buyout deadline approaches 

The Trump administration is dangling buyouts in front of a disheartened federal work force, hoping to lure a large chunk into leaving voluntarily as the president and his allies reshape the government.  

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) and individual agencies have bombarded federal employees with emails offering a “deferred resignation,” which promises employees they would retain full salary and benefits without working through Sept. 30. The offer, dubbed “A Fork in the Road,” has raised legal and logistical questions, including the fact that Congress has only funded the government through mid-March. 

Federal employees have until Thursday to accept the offer. As the deadline approaches, agencies have amped up the pressure on employees, sending frequent “reminders” and a copy of the contract they would have to sign to accept the deferred resignation. 

The dismantling of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) this week has upped the ante for federal employees who choose to remain in the path of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), the cost-cutting unit led by billionaire Elon Musk. 

President Trump appointed Musk to head DOGE shortly after his victory in November. In response to criticisms that Americans did not vote for Musk, Vice President Vance posted on X Wednesday, “They did however vote for Donald Trump who promised repeatedly to have Elon Musk root out wasteful spending in our government." 

Here are five things to watch ahead of the deadline. 

Thousands of federal workers have taken buyouts 

At least 20,000 federal employees have accepted the offer so far, a White House official said Tuesday. 

That amounts to approximately 1 percent of the 2 million federal employees. That’s below the 5 to 10 percent target the White House has reportedly set, although the acceptance rate is expected to tick up ahead of the deadline. 

The Hill has contacted OPM for an update. 

The union representing federal employees urged them not to be “tricked” into taking the offer as the deadline approaches. 

“There is not yet any evidence the administration can or will uphold its end of the bargain, that Congress will go along with this unilateral massive restructuring, or that appropriated funds can be used this way, among other issues that have been raised,” the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), which represents 800,000 federal employees, wrote in an email to members Monday. 

“We are encouraging AFGE members NOT to resign or respond to this email until you have received further information and clarification.” 

Federal workers try to 'hold the line' 

As the buyout barrage has continued, federal employees have largely held their ground. 

They’ve flocked to the Reddit page r/fednews to encourage their fellow federal employees to “hold the line” and express their outrage with the actions of the administration. 

“Hold the line, fellow feds. The only thing necessary for evil to flourish is for good people to do nothing,” one user posted Monday, emphasizing their oath to defend the Constitution against all enemies, even “domestic” ones. 

Another federal employee doubled down on their refusal to take the buyout, calling it a “really hard sell.” 

“At first, we thought it was funny at the beginning,” said the employee, who was granted anonymity to speak freely without fear of retaliation. “And then as they kept sending more and more emails out, we got angry...no we’re not voluntarily resigning. You’ll have to fire us.” 

The employee said the influx of repeated emails made them question if it was a “sign of desperation” from those offering the buyouts, which they argued could be promising employees more than they will receive. 

“It would be comical by this point, except that some people are going to accept it and believe those promises will be kept," they said.  

When asked about Musk and DOGE’s role in the chain of events, the employee called it “alarming.” 

“I feel like this is an attempted administrative coup of the federal bureaucracy,” they said. 

Jobs in jeopardy for those who refuse offer 

One reason federal employees might accept the offer: fear for their livelihoods. 

The Trump administration has threatened federal workers who do not take the offer with restructuring and downsizing, according to AFGE. 

If too few employees take the deferred resignation, layoffs are “likely” across the federal government, wrote Erv Koehler, assistant commissioner of general supplies and services at General Services Administration (GSA), in an email to agency staff reported Tuesday by the Washington Post.

Unions file lawsuit 

The AFGE and other unions representing federal employees sued OPM Tuesday seeking to block the buyouts, which they characterized as “an arbitrary, unlawful, short-fused ultimatum which workers may not be able to enforce.” 

AFGE National President Everett Kelley called the offer “slick talk from unelected billionaires and their lackeys.”  

“Despite claims made to the contrary, this deferred resignation scheme is unfunded, unlawful, and comes with no guarantees. We won’t stand by and let our members become the victims of this con,” Kelly said in a statement. 

Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.), who represents a large portion of the federal workforce concentrated in his state, said from the Senate floor last week that DOGE did not have the authority to dictate government spending, a power that belongs to Congress. 

“There’s no budget line item to pay people who are not showing up for work,” Kaine said. “Don’t be fooled. He’s tricked hundreds of people with that offer. If you accept that offer and resign, he’ll stiff you, just like he stiffed the contractors.”

McLaurine Pinover, a spokesperson for OPM, backed the buyouts and said those seeking to dissuade federal employees were doing them a “serious disservice.

“Union leaders and politicians telling federal workers to reject this offer are doing them a serious disservice. This is a rare, generous opportunity — one that was thoroughly vetted and intentionally designed to support employees through restructuring,” Pinover said in a Wednesday statement to The Hill.

Buyouts could bring brain drain, "chaos"

Without an exact number, nor details on who has taken the offer at various agencies, how this will impact the day-to-day operations of the federal government remains to be seen. 

But in addition to reshaping the contours of the federal workforce, the buyouts could cost federal agencies countless years of experience and expertise, including food inspectors, scientists and disaster responders. 

Kelly warned that since the size of the federal workforce has not meaningfully changed since the 1970s, cutting a large swath of workers could cause “chaos.” 

“Purging the federal government of dedicated career federal employees will have vast, unintended consequences that will cause chaos for the Americans who depend on a functioning federal government,” he said.