Trump’s Reductions Lead to Smaller Federal Staff in Almost Every Agency

Federal Workforce Sees Major Reductions Under Trump Administration

Photographer: Roberto Schmidt/AFP/Getty Images

According to newly released government data, President Donald Trump's administration implemented significant reductions across nearly all major federal agencies in 2025. Departments such as Education, Housing, and Treasury experienced the most substantial staff cuts.

Since Trump assumed office, over 322,000 federal employees have exited their positions, with departures outnumbering new hires by more than three to one. The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) reports that this marks the most significant shift in the federal workforce in decades. These changes followed Trump’s initial hiring freeze and the appointment of Tesla CEO Elon Musk to lead a broad initiative aimed at reducing government expenditures.

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Departments Most Affected by Staff Reductions

The Department of Education, which Trump has pledged to dismantle, saw its workforce decrease by approximately 39% between January and November 2025. The Department of Housing and Urban Development experienced a 23% reduction, while the Treasury Department’s staff dropped by 21% during the same timeframe.

Some of the largest agencies faced the most significant numerical losses. The Departments of Defense, Veterans Affairs, Treasury, and Health and Human Services all saw major reductions. Notably, the Internal Revenue Service lost 22,000 employees, and the Veterans Health Administration’s staff shrank by more than 21,400.

One of Musk’s notable initiatives was the “Fork in the Road” program, which offered deferred resignation, allowing employees to remain on the payroll for six months or longer after leaving. Most departures resulted from voluntary resignations or retirements, with only 3% attributed to layoffs. However, further reductions may occur depending on legal outcomes and congressional decisions regarding government funding.

While most agencies experienced downsizing, a handful—12 out of 127 tracked by OPM—reported modest increases in staff as of November. These included White House offices such as the Office of Administration, Council of Economic Advisers, and the US Trade Representative. Agencies like the intelligence community, Foreign Service, and US Postal Service do not provide workforce data to OPM, and the figures exclude most legislative and judicial employees.

Net Impact and Data System Updates

Overall, after accounting for new hires, the federal workforce contracted by about 219,000 positions.

Modernizing Federal Workforce Data

The latest OPM report is part of an effort to update the federal workforce data system, which previously released outdated figures. Before this update, the most recent data was from March of the previous year. The new system will now provide monthly updates, including statistics on retirement eligibility, performance, and telework, which were previously inconsistently reported.

OPM Director Scott Kupor described the new platform as “a major step forward for accountability and data-driven decision-making across government.”

However, under new executive orders issued by the Trump administration, demographic data on race, ethnicity, and gender will no longer be reported, as diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives have been prohibited in federal agencies.

Key Insights from the Latest Data

• Remote work has sharply declined, with federal employees logging 75% fewer full-time telework hours in October compared to January, as the administration moved to limit pandemic-era flexible work policies.
• The proportion of federal employees represented by unions dropped to under 38%, down from over 56% at the start of the year, following an executive order that removed certain categories of workers from union representation for national security reasons.
• While hiring continues, job postings in fiscal year 2025 were down 42.7% compared to the last full year of the Biden administration.

Reporting assistance by Kate Rabinowitz.

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