• More than 20,000 federal workers said they would accept the Trump Administration’s buyout offer. The resignation program allows employees to stop working but continue receiving pay and benefits through September.
• Approximately 2 million workers are eligible and must accept by Thursday, Feb. 6, if they want to take the deal.
• The White House expected up to 10% to accept.

More than 20,000 federal employees told the federal government they would accept the Trump administration’s buyout offer, according to Reuters. The deferred resignation program will allow employees who resign by Thursday, Feb. 6, to stop working and receive full pay and benefits through September. 

Approximately 2 million full-time civil workers are eligible for the deal. The White House said it expected up to 10% to accept it. Unless there’s a significant increase in resignations over the next two days, the federal workforce will only fall by 1%-2%.

Government officials announced the proposal on Jan. 28. After it was announced, many wondered whether the offer was legal. Some are still debating if the deal is legal. However, that doesn’t appear to be giving the administration any pause.

Those who contend it is not legal said Congress would have to approve paying those not working. 

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Some federal workers said they believed it was a trap. They doubted everyone would get paid, given that the government is set to run out of funding in March if no funding deal is made. The Trump administration assured everyone they would be fully compensated and not have to work. 

Unions opposed the deal and urged their members not to accept it.  

“Make no mistake: this email is designed to entice or scare you into resigning from the federal government,” the National Treasury Employees Union said in a message to its members. “We strongly urge you not to resign in response to this email.”

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The resignation program is part of the Trump administration’s larger effort to reduce the federal government’s size and cost. An estimate from Elon Musk’s SuperPac said it could potentially lead to $100 billion in savings. Based on the new reported figure, it will fall far short of that.