DOT Pauses Planned Workforce Cuts Due to Litigation
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The U.S. Department of Transportation said it’s pausing planned cuts to its workforce while it waits for resolution in pending legal battles over the Trump administration’s efforts to significantly reduce the size of the federal government.
A spokesperson for the department said May 30 that it’s holding off on reduction-in-force and reorganization plans due to ongoing litigation and will revisit the matter once those issues are worked out. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy told employees in a town hall earlier this month that he expected the layoffs to begin at the end of May.
Government agencies across the board were given a directive by President Donald Trump and Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency to cut the number of federal employees. Agencies were told to submit reorganization plans by mid-March.
A coalition of federal workers’ unions, nonprofit organizations and municipal governments have challenged the directive in court. On May 9, Judge Susan Illston of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California granted a temporary restraining order to halt the layoffs. On May 22 she extended the pause with a preliminary injunction.
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Musk in a post to X earlier this week said he was stepping down from his official role with the government.
Thousands of DOT workers have separately accepted one of two buyouts, or deferred resignation offers, extended since Trump took office that would allow workers to voluntarily resign but continue getting paid through the end of September.
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The buyouts have resulted in several notable departures, including the head of the Federal Aviation Administration’s commercial space office, as well as the agency’s top air traffic official.
Privately, some individuals who work for DOT have expressed concern over the possible impact departures of executive officials could have on ongoing projects and regulatory efforts, as well as the institutional knowledge they’re taking with them.
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The FAA, in particular, is dealing with a number of high-profile issues, such as air traffic control challenges at a facility that guides planes in and out of Newark Liberty International Airport and the aftermath of a deadly midair collision earlier this year near Washington.
The FAA said in a statement that about 3% of its total 46,000-person workforce have retired or voluntarily resigned. However, it said safety critical personnel have been exempt from hiring freezes and the recent buyouts and that it’s expanding hiring for some of those positions, including air traffic controllers.
At the same time, the regulator can “bring in new talent at the FAA where we are refreshing an organization that is built for the future,” it said.
