US faces record mass resignation as 100,000 federal workers to quit

The Trump administration is bracing for mass exodus on Tuesday, September 30, as 100,000 civilian federal workers are set to formally resign.

The mass resignations are part of President Donald Trump’s deferred resignation program which is launched by the Department of Government Efficiency.

Such a historic departure represents the largest ever in US history since World War II.

The resignations come as Congress faces a Tuesday deadline to approve additional funding. In case of missing the deadline, the US government will face a shutdown.

Moreover, the White House has ordered federal agencies to prepare drafts for large-scale firings if partisan negotiations fail to yield a conducive outcome. Otherwise, the resignation program will cost around $14.8 billion.

A spokesperson for the White House claimed there was “no additional cost to the government as employees would have received their salaries regardless of the program.”

“In fact, this is the largest and most effective workforce reduction plan in history and will save the government $28bn annually,” they added.

A long-time employee at the Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema) told the Guardian, “Federal workers stay for the mission. When that mission is taken away, when they’re scapegoated, when their job security is uncertain, and when their tiny semblance of work-life balance is stripped away, they leave. That’s why I left.”