WASHINGTON — As the government shutdown drags into its tenth day, the White House budget office confirmed on Friday that sweeping layoffs of federal workers have begun, marking a dramatic escalation in the ongoing standoff between the Trump administration and Congressional Democrats. Russ Vought, director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), announced on social media, “The RIFs have begun,” referencing reduction-in-force plans that go far beyond the usual practice of furloughs during a funding lapse.
The move, which administration officials say is intended to pressure Democratic lawmakers into accepting a deal to reopen the government, has sent shockwaves through federal agencies and ignited fierce debate across the political spectrum. According to CNN and the Associated Press, the Departments of Treasury, Education, and Health and Human Services (HHS) are among those hardest hit. A spokesperson for the budget office described the reductions as “substantial,” though specifics remain unclear.
At the Department of Education, a spokesperson told CNN that “some” employees will be impacted by the layoffs announced Friday. The department, which had already lost nearly half its staff since President Trump took office, now faces further cuts. The HHS, meanwhile, began layoffs across multiple divisions, targeting employees deemed “non-essential” during the shutdown. “All HHS employees receiving reduction-in-force notices were designated non-essential by their respective divisions,” an HHS spokesman said. Treasury, too, is set to issue layoff notices to 1,300 employees, according to the Associated Press.
The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, which plays a key role in safeguarding the nation’s cyber and physical infrastructure, has also seen layoffs, a person familiar with the actions told the Associated Press. Furloughed employees, already restricted in their access to work email, may not learn of their status until after the shutdown ends, with additional notifications being sent by the U.S. Postal Service, which continues to operate.
President Donald Trump previewed the aggressive tactic before the shutdown began on October 1, requiring all federal agencies to submit their reduction-in-force plans to the budget office. In a statement from the Oval Office earlier this week, Trump warned, “If this keeps going on, it’ll be substantial, and a lot of those jobs will never come back.”
This approach is a sharp departure from previous shutdowns, where workers were furloughed but typically restored to their jobs once funding resumed. Now, many face the prospect of permanent job loss. The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), the largest federal employee union, filed a legal challenge on Friday seeking to halt the firings. “It is disgraceful that the Trump administration has used the government shutdown as an excuse to illegally fire thousands of workers who provide critical services to communities across the country,” said AFGE president Everett Kelley in a statement, according to the Associated Press.
The firings have drawn bipartisan criticism, with some Republicans joining Democrats in expressing alarm. Republican Senator Susan Collins, chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, released a strongly worded statement on Friday: “I strongly oppose OMB Director Russ Vought’s attempt to permanently lay off federal workers who have been furloughed due to a completely unnecessary government shutdown caused by Senator Schumer. Regardless of whether federal employees have been working without pay or have been furloughed, their work is incredibly important to serving the public.” She added, “Arbitrary layoffs result in a lack of sufficient personnel needed to conduct the mission of the agency and to deliver essential programs, and cause harm to families in Maine and throughout our country.”
Democratic Senators Mark Warner and Tim Kaine of Virginia, home to a large federal workforce, also blasted the administration’s decision. In a joint statement provided to CNN, they said, “Donald Trump and Russ Vought are once again showing us exactly who they are: reckless ideologues willing to inflict real pain on hardworking Americans to score political points. Now, in the middle of a shutdown manufactured by Republicans… they’re doubling down by laying off federal workers, turning their own failure to govern into a direct attack on the people who keep this country running and jeopardizing vital government services.”
With both the House and Senate out of session, there’s little sign of a breakthrough. Senate Republicans have tried to peel away centrist Democrats to support a stopgap funding bill, but Democrats remain steadfast, demanding a firm commitment to extend health care benefits. Senate Majority Leader John Thune told reporters, “It’s time for them to get a backbone.” Meanwhile, House Speaker Mike Johnson and Majority Leader Steve Scalise have continued to blame Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer for the impasse, with Johnson accusing Schumer of “bowing to the Marxist wing of his party.”
On the Democratic side, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries dismissed Republican overtures, telling CNN, “Republicans have zero credibility, zero on the issue of health care. So what we’ve said to our Republican colleagues is we have to address the health care crisis that they’ve created decisively. That means legislatively, and that means right now.”
The practical effects of the shutdown are spreading. Military members are likely to miss their next paychecks, scheduled for October 15, and House Democrats’ attempts to guarantee troop pay during the shutdown have so far failed. The Associated Press reports that many federal workers will receive only partial paychecks, covering days worked before the shutdown began, while others face even smaller payments or none at all.
The shutdown’s impact is also being felt in air travel. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy warned that air traffic controllers, considered essential employees, must continue working without pay and cautioned against coordinated sick outs. Staffing shortages have already led to delays of 30 to 60 minutes at Phoenix Sky Harbor International and Newark Liberty International airports, according to CNN. “When we have small sick outs, if you will, it has massive impacts on the airspace,” Duffy said. The head of the Federal Aviation Administration, Bedford, reassured employees in a memo, “Safety will never be compromised. When staffing constraints occur, we will reduce the flow of air traffic into affected airports and centers to maintain safe operations.”
Beyond the immediate turmoil, the Partnership for Public Service, a nonpartisan group tracking federal employment, estimates that more than 200,000 civil servants have left since January due to firings, retirements, and resignations. “These unnecessary and misguided reductions in force will further hollow out our federal government, rob it of critical expertise and hobble its capacity to effectively serve the public,” warned Max Stier, the organization’s president and CEO.
As the shutdown enters a second week with no end in sight, the uncertainty weighs heavily on federal employees and the millions of Americans who rely on their services. The political battle lines are firmly drawn, with each side blaming the other for the pain being felt across the country. For now, the fate of thousands of federal workers—and the broader functioning of government—hangs in the balance.
