Trump’s resignation offers are blocked by judge hours before buyouts were set to expire

Government intends to reduce the federal workforce by 5 to 10 percent in offering buyout to hundreds of thousands of employees. A federal judge temporarily blocked President Donald Trump’s government buyout offer on Thursday afternoon, giving hundreds of thousands of federal workers more time to decide to take eight months of pay in exchange for resignment or early retirement. However, hours before the original deadline was set to expire, District Judge George O'Toole Jr. temporarily blocked it, saying the court needed time to review the legality offer.

Attorneys, lawmakers, federal work unions and Democrats had warned people that the offer is not guaranteed and urged federal employees not to take it. Hours before the original deadline, federal agency leaders had increased pressure on employees to take the offer before Trump and his allies, such as Elon Musk, make drastic changes such as placing people on administrative leave, firing them or getting rid of departments entirely.

Here is what we know so far. While numbers are not final yet, a source familiar with the situation said more than 40,000 government employees accepted the buyout as of Wednesday evening and they anticipate more would do so before the deadline. As of Thursday morning, that number is slightly less than 2 percent of the federal workforce, estimated to be around 2.2 million people. It is unclear how many federal employees were offered the buyout but the Office of Personnel Management said some workers would be exempt from it, including U.S. Postal Service employees, armed forced personnel, those in positions related to immigration enforcement and national security as well as other unspecified positions.

Trump and his allies, notably Musk, the Department of Government Efficiency chair and billionaire, seek to drastically reduce spending and thus reduce the federal workforce. Believing many agencies and departments are redundant, unnecessary or improperly spending money, Musk and his allies are trying to get rid of, or at least significantly revoke power, from these areas. The email sent to federal workers warns that those who remain in their position must return to the office five days per week, be loyal to the administration, understand that their jobs may change and require high performance.

Though Musk and his DOGE team are not technically an official department or agency – rather a temporary team within the Executive Office – they have amassed vast authority that has been scrutinized by Democrats and others. A federal judge is reviewing the legality of the buyout offer and has temporarily extended it until Monday. The future of the offer is unclear as some unions have argued it is illegal.