The Trump administration has initiated large-scale layoffs of federal employees as part of an effort to gain leverage over Democrats during the ongoing government shutdown.

"Reductions in force have begun," confirmed White House Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought on Friday via a social media post, referencing the term commonly abbreviated as "RIFs".

A spokesperson for the office verified that the layoffs were underway and described them as “significant.” By Friday afternoon, the administration revealed that seven federal agencies had commenced the process of laying off over 4,000 workers, offering a clearer picture of the scale.

President Donald Trump has long discussed reducing the size of the federal workforce and has used the shutdown as a way to pursue this initiative further.

Federal regulations require a minimum of 30 days’ notice before employees can be officially laid off.

Shortly after Vought’s announcement, major agencies including the Treasury and Health and Human Services (HHS) confirmed they were issuing layoff notices. Homeland Security also said it would be reducing staff at its Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, despite many of its personnel being classified as essential.

However, many specifics remained unclear.

Two major labor organizations, the American Federation of Government Employees and the AFL-CIO, filed a lawsuit challenging the legality of initiating layoffs amidst a government shutdown.

Following the announcement that layoffs had officially started, the unions petitioned a federal court in Northern California for a temporary injunction to halt the process.

"It is shameful that the Trump administration is taking advantage of the shutdown to illegally dismiss thousands of committed public servants," said AFGE President Everett Kelley.

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In opposition to the unions' injunction request, OMB attorneys detailed which agencies would be affected first, stating that an estimated 4,600 employees would receive layoff notices beginning Friday.

They argued that the President had directed agencies to function more efficiently due to the current lack of funding and that workforce adjustments were part of that strategy.

The Treasury Department faced the most immediate impact, with about 1,446 employees receiving notices.

HHS planned to notify between 1,100 and 1,200 staffers, according to officials.

The Department of Education and the Department of Housing and Urban Development were set to lay off at least 400 workers each. Meanwhile, other departments—including Commerce, Energy, and Homeland Security—aimed to reduce between 176 and 315 positions apiece.

The exact number of notices distributed on Friday remained unspecified.

The Environmental Protection Agency also sent "intent to RIF" notices to 20 to 30 employees, indicating that they may eventually be included in the cuts. Additional agencies could follow suit.

A spokesperson for the White House budget office explained on Saturday that these layoffs represented only the first phase.

"The number of layoffs mentioned in our court filing represents just a moment in time," he said. "There will be more to come."

Administration lawyers contended that the unions failed to demonstrate that their members would suffer irreversible harm—an essential requirement for a restraining order. On the other hand, they argued, preventing the layoffs would preemptively damage the government’s ability to manage its operations effectively.

They maintained that internal workforce decisions are typically granted the widest possible discretion under the law.

This move is considered highly unusual. In previous shutdowns, employees placed on leave (furloughed) returned to work with retroactive compensation once funding resumed.

Both furloughed workers and those required to remain on duty without pay are not compensated during shutdowns.

This particular shutdown began ten days ago after Congress failed to agree on a funding measure to keep government operations going.

"They held off for ten days," commented Republican Senator John Thune. "Eventually, decisions had to be made, and resources needed to be prioritized during the funding gap."

Senator Chuck Schumer, a Democrat and Senate Minority Leader, accused the Trump administration of intentionally creating chaos.

Democrats have declined to support a Republican spending bill to reopen the government, insisting that any agreement must retain crucial healthcare-related tax credits and reverse proposed Medicaid cuts.

Republicans, in turn, have blamed Democrats for triggering the shutdown and the resulting consequences from halted government services.

The shutdown has meant that non-essential government employees have been placed on unpaid leave. Currently, this affects roughly 750,000 workers—around 40% of the federal workforce.

Although law mandates back pay for furloughed employees after a shutdown resolves, the Trump administration has hinted that this might not occur.

Downsizing the federal workforce has long been a focus of Vought's plans.

Both the President and his budget director have used the shutdown to advance additional personnel cuts, supplementing previous reductions achieved through firings, voluntary exits, administrative leave, and resignations since Trump's return to office in January.

According to the Partnership for Public Service, a bipartisan organization monitoring government effectiveness, the federal workforce had already decreased by about 200,000 as of September 23.

Career consulting firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas reported last month that the government had publicized plans to cut nearly 300,000 jobs this year—most of them from federal agencies impacted by the Department of Government Efficiency, a White House program initially spearheaded by billionaire Elon Musk.

Before the shutdown, Vought’s office reportedly directed agencies to develop workforce reduction strategies targeting programs or employees whose funding might lapse or did not align with the administration’s goals.

One day after the shutdown began, Trump said on Truth Social that he met with Vought to evaluate which Democratic-supported agencies—many of which he described as wasteful—should face cuts and whether those reductions should be temporary or permanent.