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The White House disclosed the start of federal worker terminations on Friday, following through on earlier warnings in response to the ongoing US government shutdown, which is now poised to extend into its third consecutive week.

Official Announcement and Initial Details

The director of the White House budget office wrote on a public platform that “reductions in force have begun,” referring to the government’s process for terminating staff.

While the official did not specify which departments were impacted, a treasury spokesperson confirmed that layoff warnings had been distributed within that agency. Additionally, a DHS spokesperson indicated that layoffs would take place at the CISA. Moreover, a labor organization for federal workers announced that employees at the Education Department would be impacted by the staff cuts.

Union Response and Legal Challenges

Union leaders cautions that the terminations would have “devastating effects” on services relied upon by the public and vowed to contest the actions in court.

“It is disgraceful that the administration has used the government shutdown as an pretext to wrongfully terminate thousands of workers who provide critical services to the public nationwide,” stated a national union president, representing the American Federation of Government Employees.

The largest labor federation in the US reacted to the announcement, declaring, “Labor organizations will see you in court.”

Political Standoff and Budget Dispute

Congressional Democrats have refused to support a Republican-backed legislation to reopen the government unless it contains healthcare-centered concessions. Following multiple unsuccessful votes, the GOP leadership in the Senate have put the chamber in recess until next Tuesday, indicating the standoff is unlikely to be ended soon.

At a press conference, the Republican House speaker, the speaker, criticized opposition lawmakers for rejecting the Republican proposal, which was approved in the House on a largely partisan basis.

“This is the last paycheck that 700,000 federal workers will see until Washington Democrats decide to fulfill their duties and reopen the government,” the speaker stated. Beginning shortly, American service members, many of whom live paycheck to paycheck, are going to miss a full paycheck.”

Judicial and Practical Limits

Last week, labor groups sought a court injunction to prevent the administration from carrying out any reductions in force during the shutdown. Moreover, a federal judge directed the administration to provide specifics on layoff plans, affected agencies, and if any government staff had been brought back to carry out staff reductions.

A report argued that a funding lapse restricts the authority of the government to carry out firings, referencing guidance that admitted any permanent layoffs need to have been initiated prior to the shutdown began.

Consequences for Employees

The layoffs occurred on the very day that federal workers got only a partial paycheck covering the final days of the previous month but not the start of October, since funding lapsed at the beginning of the month.

A public service advocate, the president of the advocacy group, condemned the political stalemate’s impact on federal employees.

This is unjust to make government staff bear the burden because our leaders in the legislature and the White House have not succeeded to keep our federal operations running,” Stier said. The flight regulators, veterans’ healthcare providers, wildland firefighters and food inspectors are not responsible for this funding crisis.”

The irony is that members of Congress and senior White House leaders are still receiving salaries amid the funding gap.