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By Monica Sager and Kate Nalepinski
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Some federal employees were surprised to see a message in their email inbox on Wednesday presenting them with an offer to resign from their positions in exchange for about eight months of pay.
The email, received by over 2 million federal workers, was sent after the Trump administration offered to buy out all federal employees who opted to leave their positions by February 6.
The sweeping offer that could significantly reshape the United States government workforce has sparked concern and uncertainty among employees, particularly as the deadline to resign looms.
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What To Know
Donald Trump's buyout initiative provides about eight months of severance pay to federal workers who voluntarily resign. The administration expects 5 to 10 percent of employees to accept the offer, per Axios, potentially leading to the departure of hundreds of workers.
The federal government employs over 3 million workers, making it the nation's 15th largest workforce.
The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) framed the offer as "administrative leave with pay and benefits" and distributed instructions via government email accounts.
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Full OPM Email Text Sent
The OPM memo detailing the buyout policy, titled "A Fork in the Road," instructs eligible employees on the resignation process and outlines changes in work standards. It reads:
"During the first week of his administration, President Trump issued a number of directives concerning the federal workforce. Among those directives, the President required that employees return to in-person work, restored accountability for employees who have policy-making authority, restored accountability for senior career executives, and reformed the federal hiring process to focus on merit. As a result of the above orders, the reform of the federal workforce will be significant.
"The reformed federal workforce will be built around four pillars:
"Each of the pillars outlined above will be pursued in accordance with applicable law, consistent with your agency's policies, and to the extent permitted under relevant collective-bargaining agreements.
"If you choose to remain in your current position, we thank you for your renewed focus on serving the American people to the best of your abilities and look forward to working together as part of an improved federal workforce. At this time, we cannot give you full assurance regarding the certainty of your position or agency but should your position be eliminated you will be treated with dignity and will be afforded the protections in place for such positions.
"If you choose not to continue in your current role in the federal workforce, we thank you for your service to your country and you will be provided with a dignified, fair departure from the federal government utilizing a deferred resignation program. This program begins effective January 28 and is available to all federal employees until February 6. If you resign under this program, you will retain all pay and benefits regardless of your daily workload and will be exempted from all applicable in-person work requirements until September 30, 2025 (or earlier if you choose to accelerate your resignation for any reason). The details of this separation plan can be found below.
"Whichever path you choose, we thank you for your service to The United States of America."
What Is Deferred Resignation?
When contacted for comment, the OPM directed Newsweek to guidance sent to federal agencies navigating the changes.
The memorandum from OPM Acting Director Charles Ezell reads: "Employees who accept deferred resignation should promptly have their duties re-assigned or eliminated and be placed on paid administrative leave until the end of the deferred resignation period."
Deferred resignation allows employees to resign under the buyout program while retaining full pay and benefits until September 30.
How Can Federal Employees Resign Under The New Policy?
Employees interested in the buyout must reply to the official government email with "Resign." The response must come from their .gov or .mil email accounts to be processed.
Once submitted, employees are expected to receive confirmation of their resignation and details about severance disbursement.
When Would The Payouts Be Completed?
Employees who resign under the program are expected to receive their severance payments in phases, with final payouts completed by the end of the fiscal year, September 30, 2025.
Why It Matters
The Trump administration views the buyouts as a way to streamline government and cut costs, potentially leading to taxpayer savings.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt supported the plan in a briefing on Wednesday. She said: "This is a suggestion to federal workers that they have to return to work. If they don't, then they have the option to resign, and this administration is very generously offering to pay them for eight months."
For some federal employees, the reductions are viewed as attempts to purge longtime employees from their jobs.
Everett Kelley, president of the American Federation of Government Employees, denounced the plan: "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."
What further concerns some federal employees is that the OPM memo mirrors an email sent to X employees in 2022, when owner Elon Musk said that they would need to commit to an intense work schedule or leave. The subject line of that email was: "A Fork in the Road."
What Is The Deadline To Resign?
The deadline for federal employees to opt into the buyout program is February 6. After this date, employees who have not resigned will be subject to new workplace policies, including the mandated return to in-office work and stricter performance evaluation.
What People Are Saying
Representative Jasmine Crockett, on X, formerly Twitter: "Trump is offering a fake 'buyout' to federal workers with no guarantee he won't screw them the minute they accept - and then replace them with unqualified, inexperienced loyalists the second they leave. This is STRAIGHT from the pages of Project 2025."
Elon Musk, on X: "Those deciding to take the deferred resignation deal can do anything they want for the next 8 months and are not required to work at all whatsoever." (In response to claims that workers who take the deal must continue to work).
Senator Tim Kaine, Tuesday on the Senate floor: "If you tender your resignation by next Friday, we will guarantee you payment through the end of September whether or not you show up for work...The President has no authority to make that offer. There's no budget line item to pay people who are not showing up for work."
Businessman and 2020 presidential candidate Andrew Yang, on X: "Trump is offering 8 months of pay through September for federal employees who want to leave / not return to the office. That is actually a very generous offer relative to private sector standards."
What Happens Next
Federal employees are forced to weigh their options as the resignation deadline approaches. However, the full impact of the policy shift may not become evident for several months, as agencies may struggle with employee vacancies under Trump's second-term initiatives.
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