With key Democrats denouncing any possible mass firings at the Department of Energy, the deadline is before midnight Tuesday for DOE staff to opt into the latest round of voluntary buyouts.
Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) and Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio) said Friday they are troubled by reports by Associated Press and other media of possible mass layoffs at DOE, including the semiautonomous National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA).
“Arbitrary staffing cuts across the Department of Energy would recklessly jeopardize its ability to fulfill its mission to ensure America’s security and prosperity by addressing our energy, environmental, and nuclear security challenges,” said the senior Democrats on Appropriation Committees in their respective chambers.
“We call for this foolishness to be set aside and for cooler heads to prevail for the sake of our communities, country, and world,” the Democrats said in a joint statement Friday. They were reacting to reporting by the Associated Press and other outlets.
The reports, citing a leaked administration memo, said only 56% of the DOE workforce should be considered essential. The AP story also said 8,500 DOE staff, including 500 at NNSA, could be deemed non-essential.
According to a separate memo from Secretary of Energy Chris Wright and viewed by Exchange Monitor, 11:59 p.m. Tuesday, April 8, is the deadline for employees to enroll in a DOE-specific Deferred Resignation Program and a similar retirement option.
The department-specific plan is something of a sequel to the so-called Fork in the Road initiative from the White House Office of Personnel Management earlier this year. The Donald Trump administration has prioritized shrinking the federal government payroll and is encouraging feds to leave on their own and avoid potential future layoffs.
