The Department of Veterans Affairs announced late Thursday that 1,000 employees have been “dismissed” as President Donald Trump seeks to cut the size of the federal workforce.
The V.A. said the positions eliminated were among non-bargaining unit probationary employees who have served less than a year in a competitive service appointment or who have served less than two years in an excepted service appointment. The V.A. says the dismissals will save the department $98 million per year.
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The figure also does not include employees who accepted buyouts, which would allow them to leave their job and continue getting paid through September. A total of 75,000 throughout the federal government accepted a buyout, which accounted for just under 4% of the federal workforce.
The V.A. says that 42,000 probationary employees will remain within the department because they serve in mission-critical positions or are covered under a collective bargaining agreement.
“At VA, we are focused on saving money so it can be better spent on veteran care. We thank these employees for their service to VA. This was a tough decision, but ultimately it’s the right call to better support the veterans, families, caregivers, and survivors the department exists to serve,” said VA Secretary Doug Collins. “To be perfectly clear: these moves will not negatively impact VA health care, benefits or beneficiaries. In the coming weeks and months, VA will be announcing plans to put these resources to work helping veterans, their families, caregivers and survivors.”
The V.A. had previously instituted a hiring freeze soon after President Trump took office, which drew ire from Democrats. The V.A. responded by saying some positions were exempt from President Trump’s hiring freeze.
The size of the V.A. grew steadily during the Biden administration, growing to a workforce of 471,621 employees last year. The overwhelming majority of employees are involved in providing health care for veterans.
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Denis McDonough, who served as the Biden administration’s secretary of Veterans Affairs, said last month he wanted to see more, not less, spending for the department.
“I think we’ve been very clear that we’ve asked for significant increases in the VA budget for the last four years,” he said. “We’ve been very clear in how and where we spend that. When we’ve needed extra money, we’ve gone to the Hill to explain what it is we need it for and why it is that we need it. And inevitably, we only need the extra funding because this is a veteran-centered organization, meaning we’re going to make every decision based on what the veterans need.”
Collins has said the V.A. is “going to deliver timely access to care and benefits for every eligible Veteran, family member, caregiver and survivor.”
