The IRS offered employees 3 routes to leave their jobs — or risk being fired
Andrew Harnik/AP Photo
- The IRS offered its workers deferred resignations, incentive payments, and early retirement.
- It follows an earlier email the IRS sent confirming staff cuts have started.
- Trump has directed federal agencies to slash their workforces to promote efficiency.
The Internal Revenue Service to its employees: voluntarily leave your job or risk getting fired later.
On Tuesday morning, the IRS sent an email to its employees — a copy of which was reviewed by Business Insider — offering three "voluntary separation programs":
- A second and final deferred resignation program offering employees paid administrative leave through September 30;
- A voluntary separation incentive payment, allowing employees to take a lump-sum buyout offer with a cap of $25,000
- And a voluntary early retirement application for employees who are at least 50 with at least 20 years of federal service, or any age with at least 25 years of federal service.
The deadline for employees to decide whether they want to leave their jobs voluntarily is April 14 at 11:59 p.m. ET.
Tuesday's email follows an email sent to employees on Friday, viewed by BI, that said that the IRS had begun its staffing cuts "to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of the IRS." These are formally called Reduction in Force, or RIF, plans. The email said that 75% of the IRS' Office of Civil Rights and Compliance was subject to a RIF, and further reductions would be "implemented in phases."
"This message is only notification that the IRS has begun the RIF process and does not serve as your official notification. Each office will receive direct communication when their phase begins," the email said.
An email sent to employees on Saturday notified them of the second deferred resignation offer and said, "At this time, we cannot give you full assurance regarding which positions will remain - or where they will be located - after Treasury's restructuring." Tuesday's email warned employees that those who do not choose to voluntarily leave will remain subject to any coming RIFs.
The IRS terminated probationary employees in February, but a federal judge later ordered them reinstated. They're still subject to later RIF plans at the agency.
The IRS and Treasury did not immediately respond to requests for comment from BI. Kevin Hassett, the director of the White House National Economic Council, previously told reporters that firings at the IRS would likely escalate "as we improve IT" at the agency.
President Donald Trump and the DOGE office have directed all federal agencies to begin RIF plans as part of their efforts to reduce government waste. On Monday night, the Department of Homeland Security offered its employees the same programs as IRS workers, and other agencies, like the Department of Education and the Small Business Administration, have announced plans to slash their workforces. The Social Security Administration said employees could volunteer to be reassigned to "mission critical" roles ahead of reductions.
The Department of Health and Human Services also began firing workers last week following the agency's plan to terminate about 10,000 workers. David Super, an administrative law professor at Georgetown Law, told BI that he was "confident" the HHS terminations would be litigated, and it's likely any terminations at other agencies would face lawsuits, as well.
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