CNN
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The U.S. Education Bureau announced Tuesday that it is cutting nearly 50% of its workforce as President Donald Trump proposed to remove the agency completely.
In addition to those who have undergone voluntary “shops,” hundreds will be fired from Tuesday evening. These actions will cut the workforce in about 4,100 sectors in half at the start of the Trump administration.
“Today’s power cuts reflect the Department of Education’s efficiency, accountability and ensuring they are directed to where they matter most, to students, parents and teachers,” Education Secretary Linda McMahon said in a statement. “We are grateful for the dedicated civil servants’ contributions to the work and department.
McMahon said Tuesday that cuts were the first course of action when closing agencies, and while Trump has vowed, he has admitted that eliminating the department completely requires Congress to act. CNN reported last week that White House officials had prepared an executive order instructing McMahon to begin the process of dismantling the department.
Fox News asked if the layoffs were “the first step towards a complete shutdown.” “Yes, it’s actually true, because that was the president’s mission that was directed at me, and obviously we’d shut down the Department of Education,” she continued, describing the layoff as “eliminating what I think is bureaucratic bloated.”
According to senior agency officials, the approximately 1,300 employees who notify the layoff will be terminated in 90 days. Those fired will begin teleworking on Wednesday and proceed to administrative leave paid from March 21, adding that employees will receive retirement benefits based on the length of service.
The cuts, along with 63 probation employees fired last month as part of a White House directive, officials added. Additionally, over 300 employees took voluntary separation incentives worth up to $25,000, while around 260 people accepted a postponed resignation package.
Tuesday’s cuts follow similar layoffs at other federal agencies as part of Trump and Elon Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency’s ongoing efforts to reduce the size of the federal government.
A senior official told reporters that Cutt would not affect federal student aid “in any form, shape or form” as experts are wary of whether such substantial cuts can carry out their normal duties.
Officials added that the previous memo has been sent to employees and announced that the agency’s office will be temporarily closed for unspecified “security reasons.” An earlier memo obtained by CNN has instructed employees to work remotely until Thursday.
Layoff employees will be working remotely from Wednesday until March 21st.
Authorities also announced that several offices across the country will be closed as part of changes that include San Francisco and New York. The agency will eventually merge into one office in Washington, DC, with three Washington, DC currently in its entirety.
A few minutes before employees were asked to open the building, security guards were seen locking the doors at the headquarters of the Department of Education in Washington, D.C. The office is scheduled to reopen on Thursday.
Longtime department staff told CNN they couldn’t remember that all offices were closed, even if a critical VIP was on the scene.
Several Education Department employees previously told CNN they were nervous about the massive looming layoffs and the looming executive order from Trump.
In an email sent to employees who are not affected by the cut and obtained by CNN, the agency said “a significant change is needed in the way we work.”
“Your position wasn’t directly affected, but I understand that it’s never easy to see your precious colleagues and friends leaving,” the agency’s chief executive said in an email, adding, “It’s important that we choose not to prioritize this transition and not prioritize.”
The union representing the Ministry of Education’s workers and teachers responded quickly to Tuesday’s cuts, expressing concerns about the workforce and the impact on the tens of millions of students the agency served.
“What’s clear from the mass shootings, confusion and unidentified nonprofessionalism over the past few weeks is that this administration does not respect the thousands of workers who have dedicated their careers to serve fellow Americans,” Shelia Smith, local 252 of the U.S. Government Employees Federation, said in a statement. “It is also clear that there is a ramp outbreak campaign to mislead Americans about the actual services, resources, grants and programs the U.S. Department of Education offers to all Americans.”
Another major teacher union denounced Trump and Elon Musk for the reshaping of the federal government that led to cuts on Tuesday. “The real victims will be our most vulnerable students,” Becky Pringle, president of the National Education Association, said in a statement.
Such drastic cuts are “reasonable,” an expert previously told CNN.
“If (Trump) says, ‘The staff will be cut by 50%,’ there’s a reason to worry about how the system will work. Is that enough person? ” said Neil McCrusky, director of the Cato Institute’s Center for Educational Freedom. “We learn if they can do their less work.”
This story and headings have been updated with additional reports.
Michael Williams of CNN contributed to this report.
