State Department starts mass layoffs of approximately 1,800 employees in the coming days
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The State Department notified U.S. employees on Thursday that it will soon begin laying off 2,000 workers after a recent Supreme Court ruling allows the Trump administration to continue its massive work as part of an effort to reduce the size of the federal workforce.
The agency's restructuring plan was first unveiled in April by Secretary of State Marco Rubio to eliminate the functions and offices of the department that are considered redundant. In February, President Donald Trump issued an executive order directing Rubio to transform foreign services to ensure the president's foreign policy “faithfully” implementation.
Michael Rigas told employees in an email Thursday that employees who are affected by the agency’s “reduced effectiveness” will be notified soon.
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The State Department informed U.S. employees that it will soon lay off nearly 2,000 workers. (Nathan Posner/Anadolu agent via Getty Images)
“First of all, we want to thank them for their dedication and service to the United States,” Rigas said in an email.
He added: “The fullest effort has been done to support colleagues who are about to leave, including those who have chosen to defer a resignation program… On behalf of the department leaders, we express our gratitude for your hard work and commitment to the implementation of this restructuring and your dedication to your continued promotion of national interests around the world.”
The department did not specify how many people were fired on Thursday, but in a plan sent to Congress in May, it proposed layoffs of about 1,800 of the estimated domestic workforce. It is estimated that another 1,575 people have resigned deferredly.
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The restructuring plan was first unveiled by Secretary of State Marco Rubio in April. (Julien de Rosa/Pool/AFP via Getty Images)
Congress’s plan does not state how many of these workers come from the civil service and the number of services from abroad, but it does say that more than 300 offices and offices of the department’s 734 offices will be simplified, merged or eliminated.
Once affected employees are notified, the department “will enter the final stage of the reorganization and focus on delivering results-driven diplomacy,” Rigas said in an email to colleagues.
Expected termination begins on Friday.
State Department spokesman Tammy Bruce told reporters earlier Thursday that the only reason for the reduction in force was because the court stepped in because she said mass layoffs would happen soon.
Expected termination begins on Friday. (Yuri Gripas/Abaca/bloomberg by Getty image)
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“There is a procrastination – not for our interests, but because of the court,” Bruce noted. “It's difficult when you know you need to do something for the benefit of everyone.”
“When something is too big to operate, too bureaucratic to actually operate, deliver a project or action, it has to change,” she said.
Reuters contributed to the report.
