The Trump administration plans to provide buyout packages to federal employees

The White House anticipates that as many as 10% of federal workers will resign under a buyout scheme designed to phase out remote work, according to senior administration officials.

President Trump's advisers intend to send a government-wide email on Tuesday informing employees that they have until February 6 to decide whether to engage in a "deferred resignation program," which would allow federal employees to quit in September.

"If you resign under this program, you will retain all pay and benefits regardless of your daily workload and will be exempted from all applicable in-person work requirements until September 30, 2025 (or earlier if you choose to accelerate your resignation for any reason)," the email states.

Those who do not want to work in the office "are free to choose a different line of work, and the Trump Administration will provide a very generous payout of 8 months," White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement.

However, there are certain exceptions to the buyout: postal workers, military personnel, immigration officers, some national security duties that the government did not detail, and any other position that agencies believe important will be unable to opt in, according to the sources.

Those who accept the buyout would be excused from any "return to office" obligations, but would retain their present pay and benefits until their ultimate departure date.

The letter to government employees also stated that while some agencies and sections of the military were expected to be enlarged, "the majority of federal agencies are likely to be downsized through restructurings, realignments, and reductions in force." As a result, a number of government employees may be furloughed or reclassified as at-will workers.

The American Federation of Government Employees, the largest federal workers organization, claimed Tuesday that the buyouts were part of a bigger strategy to eliminate government servants.

“This offer should not be viewed as voluntary. Between the flurry of anti-worker executive orders and policies it is clear that the Trump administration’s goal is to turn the federal government into a toxic environment where workers cannot stay even if they want to,” AFGE National President Everett Kelley said in a statement.