Federal workforce shrinks to six-decade low after Trump-era cuts

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that the U.S. federal workforce has contracted to about 2.7 million employees, the lowest headcount in six decades. Since President Trump took office in January 2025, more than 300,000 positions have been eliminated, representing an 11% reduction overall. The steepest losses happened during the first year of his second term, after which staffing levels have remained steady through 2026.

Reductions touched almost all major departments, including Education, Agriculture and Housing and Urban Development, while the Department of Homeland Security’s numbers stayed roughly constant. The most dramatic wave occurred at the end of September 2025, when a voluntary buyout program prompted over 150,000 civil servants to leave, marking the biggest single-year departure in nearly 80 years. Treasury data show that federal payroll costs rose by about 3% in Trump’s first year compared with the same period under the prior administration, indicating limited fiscal savings from the cuts.