โ€˜Iโ€™m already done with version 2.0โ€™: Inside federal agencies where workers fear for jobs under new administration


After just one week under Donald Trumpโ€™s leadership, some federal workers say they are already โ€œdoneโ€ with his second presidency.

In his first week back in the White House, the president signed a wide range of executive orders, including some that directly impact federal workers.

He imposed a federal hiring freeze, required employees to return to work in person, and ended โ€œdiversity, equity and inclusionโ€ (DEI) programs, which he described as demonstrating โ€œpublic waste and shameful discrimination.โ€

The swift changes have some federal workers considering quitting, according to Politico. A Washington-based employment lawyer who represents federal workers told the outlet that his firm had received a surge of calls in the wake of Trumpโ€™s stack of executive orders.

An Environmental Protection Agency staffer told the outlet: โ€œTrump version 1.0 was bad. Iโ€™m already done with version 2.0.โ€

The Office of Personnel Management sent out a memo this week warning federal employees against trying to โ€œdisguise [DEI] programs by using coded or imprecise language.โ€ The memo stated that failing to report this information within 10 days โ€may result in adverse consequences.โ€

Others in need of a paycheck say they are โ€œterrifiedโ€ about leaving their current jobs.

Donald Trump signed a deluge of executive orders in his first week back in office, including some that directly impact federal workers. Now, some federal workers are contemplating quitting

Donald Trump signed a deluge of executive orders in his first week back in office, including some that directly impact federal workers. Now, some federal workers are contemplating quitting (AP)

โ€œI would love to leave, but I donโ€™t know where Iโ€™d go, and I am terrified of not being able to pay rent and not having healthcare,โ€ one State Department staffer told the outlet.

Others still are waiting to see how the orders shape up before making any career changes.

โ€œMost of us are watching cautiously and letting the dust settle,โ€ an employee at the U.S. Agency for International Development told the outlet. โ€œWe know that there is a range of possible outcomes, and some people are panicking, but most are taking a wait-and-see approach.โ€

The clock is ticking.

To add insult to injury, a memo from the Office of Personnel Management Monday required all agencies to identify recent hires and โ€œpromptly determine whether those employees should be retained at the agency.โ€ Employees who have been in their posts for less than a year can be terminated without โ€œtriggeringโ€ appeals from the Merit Systems Protection Board, which protects federal employees.

In his first week in office, Trump signed orders requiring federal employees to return to work in person, ending DEI programs, imposing a federal hiring freeze

In his first week in office, Trump signed orders requiring federal employees to return to work in person, ending DEI programs, imposing a federal hiring freeze (AP)

Some employees are exploring the option of joining the American Federation of Government Employees, a union that represents over 800,000 workers. Membership already skyrocketed in the weeks before Trump was sworn in, according to the outlet.

A spokesperson told the outlet it โ€œwill be tracking how agencies implement the orders and will be prepared to file grievances if our contracts are violated.โ€

Perhaps a barrage of resignations is part of the new administrationโ€™s plan. Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, as anticipated co-heads of the Department of Government Efficiency, wrote an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal that an in-person work mandate would result in resignations. Now only Musk leads DOGE.

โ€œRequiring federal employees to come to the office five days a week would result in a wave of voluntary terminations that we welcome: If federal employees donโ€™t want to show up, American taxpayers shouldnโ€™t pay them for the Covid-era privilege of staying home,โ€ the pair wrote.

Maryland Democratic Rep. Glenn Ivey predicted where Trumpโ€™s orders targeting federal workers were heading. He told the New York Times this week: โ€œI think we know where it looks like heโ€™s trying to go, which is to force people to quit. Theyโ€™re going to try and force a lot of federal employees out of work, and then replace them with political loyalists.โ€



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