Trump shutdown warning: Federal employees could lose jobs

The US president warns of wide national layoffs if backing woody fails amid shutdown conflict with Democrats.

President Donald Trump’s medication has raised the stakes successful a showdown with US Senate Democrats implicit a looming partial authorities shutdown, threatening to permanently region workers from immoderate national agencies if backing runs retired adjacent week.

Late Wednesday, the White House’s Office of Management and Budget (OMB) — which has played a cardinal relation successful Trump’s run to trim the size of authorities — sent a memo retired to national agencies. It instructed the departments to place programmes, projects and activities wherever discretionary backing volition lapse connected October 1 if the US Congress does not walk authorities to support the national authorities open.

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“Programs that did not payment from an infusion of mandatory appropriations volition carnivore the brunt of a shutdown,” it said.

The memo, which the White House shared with the media, told agencies to taxable their projected reduction-in-force plans to the OMB and to contented notices to employees if they are yet unopen down.

The national authorities is connected the brink of its 15th partial shutdown since 1981 due to the fact that lawmakers person failed to hold connected a program for discretionary backing for the caller fiscal year, oregon astir one-quarter of the $7 trillion budget.

On September 19, the Republican-controlled House of Representatives passed a stopgap measure to money the authorities done November 21. Senate Democrats rejected it, demanding that immoderate authorities undo caller cuts to healthcare programs.

“This is an effort astatine intimidation,” Senate Democratic person Chuck Schumer said successful effect to the OMB memo. “Donald Trump has been firing national workers since Day One — not to govern, but to scare.”

This is an effort astatine intimidation.

Donald Trump has been firing national workers since time one—not to govern, but to scare.

This is thing caller and has thing to bash with backing the government.

These unnecessary firings volition either beryllium overturned successful tribunal oregon the… pic.twitter.com/M4mms6tFGS

— Chuck Schumer (@SenSchumer) September 25, 2025

Shrugging disconnected the menace of wide firings is simply a alteration successful attack for Democrats compared to earlier this year, erstwhile a shutdown was avoided.

Since the archetypal week of the Trump administration, Schumer has railed against OMB person Russ Vought, calling his plans “dangerous” to moving radical and to the US.

Trump has waged a run to trim the 2.4 million-member national civilian workforce since January. Roughly 300,000 national civilian workers volition person near their jobs by the extremity of 2025, Office of Personnel Management Director Scott Kupor told the Reuters quality bureau successful August.

About 154,000 of those employees accepted buyouts and volition driblet disconnected the US government’s payroll connected September 30, the past time of the government’s fiscal year.

When Congress faced a backing combat successful March, Schumer and apical Democrats disquieted astir however Trump could usage a authorities shutdown to propel the downsizing of the national government.

Schumer voted with 9 different Senate Democrats successful March to present the indispensable votes to walk stopgap funding. Many rank-and-file Democrats, including leaders successful the House, criticised leaders for failing to basal up to the Republican administration.

Republican leaders person truthful acold held disconnected connected negotiating with Democrats.

“These dedicated workers person thing to bash with the ongoing governmental and argumentation disputes that person brought america to the brink of a shutdown,” Senator Chris Van Hollen, a Maryland Democrat who represents galore national workers adjacent the nation’s capital, said successful a statement.

He called Trump’s menace “mafia-style blackmail”.