Over 2 million U.S. federal employees are now at a crossroads. The deadline set by the Donald Trump administration for voluntarily choosing resignation is the 6th (local time). On the 28th of last month, the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) sent an email to more than 2 million federal employees, requesting a response regarding their resignation decision by the 6th.

The email was titled "Fork in the Road." This title mirrors the email sent by Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, to employees after acquiring X (formerly Twitter). At that time, Musk gave employees one day to decide. Ultimately, 2,492 employees (about 69% of the total workforce) chose to quit. Over 1,000 employees refused to resign and were fired the next day. While Musk, now part of the Trump administration, is attempting a similar mass layoff, there are some differences from what happened at Twitter. In its email, OPM outlined four major directions for federal government reform: ▲return to office ▲performance culture ▲a more streamlined and flexible workforce ▲strengthened code of conduct. Employees wishing to resign were instructed to select "Reply" to the email. Replies from accounts other than .gov or .mil are not permitted. The instructions also specified to type "Resign" in the body of the reply email and click "Send." Employees who choose to resign will receive eight months' worth of salary.

Protesters opposing the Trump administration's federal reforms hold signs that read "Federal employees, please stay strong." Photo by AFP/Getty Images via Yonhap News

There are not many options: "Will you quit, stay, or hold out and get fired?" The White House expects that 5-10% of federal employees will resign. 10% of 2 million is 200,000 people. The administration anticipates saving about $100 billion in salaries through this measure. According to the internet media outlet Axios, as of the 4th?two days before the deadline?about 20,000 employees had replied with their intention to resign, and this number is expected to rise by the 6th. According to U.S. government statistics, as of November 2024, more than 3 million people (including non-permanent employees) work for the federal government (executive branch only, excluding legislative and judicial branches). The workforce peaked at 3.4 million in 1990 and hit its most recent low of 2.7 million in 2014. By industry, it ranks 15th overall, accounting for 1.7% of the U.S. labor force. This is more than public utilities (570,000), mining (600,000), and agriculture, forestry, and fisheries (1.46 million).

Federal Employee Workforce Distribution by State. U.S. Office of Personnel Management

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About 2.3 million permanent employees are eligible for resignation. By department, the Department of Defense has the most (775,100), followed by the Department of Veterans Affairs (433,700) and the Department of Homeland Security (212,000). By region, Washington D.C. has the largest number with about 160,000, followed by California (147,487), Maryland (142,876), Texas (129,738), Virginia (144,483), and Florida (94,014). In Washington D.C., 43.3% of the total population are government employees. The high number of federal employees in Virginia and Maryland is due to their proximity to Washington D.C. In Virginia, the Navy accounts for the largest portion of federal employees (31.4%), followed by the Department of Defense (19.5%) and the Army (10.5%). In Maryland, the Department of Health and Human Services leads (28.1%), followed by the Navy (12.0%) and the Army (10.6%). According to a report from the U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB), as of May 2024, about 1.1 million federal employees (46% of the total) are eligible for telework. There are 228,000 remote workers, and among those eligible for telework but not fully remote, about 39% of their working hours are spent working remotely.

Federal employees' salaries range from $15,278 to $269,735 depending on the job. The average annual salary is $90,000. Medical officers have the highest average salary at $269,735, followed by securities compliance examiners ($210,689), dentists ($202,333), administrative law judges ($192,546), and ship pilots ($183,500). Among the 15 highest-paid federal jobs, three are in healthcare and three are in patent-related fields. According to the most recent data (March 2023), federal employees in Washington D.C. have the highest average annual salary at $137,045. The top three states are Maryland ($128,254), Virginia ($112,665), and New Jersey ($112,149). The states with the lowest average salaries are Utah ($81,018), Wyoming ($80,549), and South Dakota ($80,020).

Federal Employee Salary Distribution by Region. From $80,000 to $137,000. U.S. Office of Personnel Management

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Labor unions and civil society groups are pushing back against the federal government restructuring. The National Federation of Federal Employees (NFFE), one of the federal employee unions, stated, "Do not reply with your intention to resign." Some point out that the voluntary resignation program has many loopholes. Although the administration promises to pay salaries through September to those who indicate their intention to resign, critics argue this is an unenforceable promise under current law. The budget set last year began in March, but no funds were allocated for these payouts. Since those who resign will not actually work during the eight months of paid leave, they will effectively be on administrative leave. Federal law allows a maximum of 10 days of administrative leave, so eight months is considered illegal. While employees expect to receive full pay and extended administrative leave under the resignation program, there may be no official or legally binding guarantee of these benefits.