Life has been messy over the past few weeks if you work in the federal government. The Trump administration promised to reduce the size of the administration, which was their promise. President Trump handed over the mission to Elon Musk. Foreseeable, Musk brought Silicon Valley technology culture to the public sector. Musk established the Ministry of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and filled it with tech brothers in his 20s. They have been clearing the federal labor force ever since.
I need a glossary to see this post.
- Doge – Ministry of Government Efficiency.
- OPM – Personal Management Office
- pension – Pay regularly to retirees.
- drp – Deferred resignation plan
- Vila – Voluntary early retirement agency
- Cola – Cost of living adjustment
- MRA – Minimum retirement age. For those born in 1970 and later, this is 57 years old.
Twitter shortened script
January 28ThOPM sent an email to more than 2 million civilian federal employees called “Fork on the Road”. The email provides the recipient with a Delay Resignation Plan (DRP). Employees can resign before February 6 and receive compensation until the date of resignation at the end of September. It is a motivation to inspire workers to resign, similar to the private sector’s severance program. Frankly, eight months’ salary is very generous for the acquisition program.
Elon Musk modeled this with his Twitter (now X) takeover. He got rid of 80% of the workers and X still worked. They have many technical failures and have lost a large number of users, but you can post anything on today’s platform. X’s revenue fell 50%, but operating expenses accounted for only a quarter of the past. Currently, X has lost 80% of its value since Musk took over. Anyway, Musk uses the same script on the federal government.
The federal labor force will only have a few days to figure out what to do. They can quit or stay and hope for the best. One problem is that they distrust Doge, which has insulted public officials and threatened to terminate. The way government operates does not work the same way as private companies operate to maintain stability. Additionally, Doge may not have the right to fulfill its eight-month payment promise. Congress has not approved funding for federal agencies on March 14. Where will the DRP funds come from? While the Fork Email on the Road said those who resigned will take effect by the end of September, the effective date may be faster. The union warned workers that there is no guarantee that the president can or will stick with it. Some Twitter employees were fired after accepting their resignation agreements.
There will be many lawsuits to challenge DRP and subsequent reductions. Federal judges have extended DRP deadline to February 11Th.
The first DRP email is not popular. If you are planning to leave or be ready to retire, DRP is great. However, there are not enough details. Since then, OPM has sent several emails to clarify the program. One of the most relevant notes is Vera that some government agencies require. This is a rare retirement agency when government agencies need to undergo major restructuring (e.g., reducing staff). If the DRP deadline resigns, employees who are eligible for early retirement will receive an immediate annuity. OPM also said Vera will not be available after the deadline.
retire
The biggest benefit of retired federal employees is pensions, ongoing health benefits and life insurance. (They still have to pay health and life insurance premiums.) Public sector employees are paid less than their private sector. Pensions should balance scale. There are several ways to qualify for an annuity. The following information comes from OPM’s website.
Retire now
You are entitled to immediate retirement benefits if you meet one of the following age and service requirements:
| Qualification Information | |
| age | Year of service |
| 62 | 5 |
| 60 | 20 |
| MRA | 30 |
| MRA | 10 |
If you are eligible for regular retirement by the end of the year, then DRP is great. OPM says you can “resign and retire” and they will approve retirement benefits.
Early Retirement Also known as Vera
Early retirement benefits may be used in certain cases of involuntary separation and in the event of voluntary separation during major reorganization or effective reduction. In order to meet the criteria, you must meet the following requirements:
| Qualification Information | |
| age | Year of service |
| 50 | 20 |
| Any age | 25 |
OPM also said they would approve Vera. Usually, every department must ask for Vera in advance. After OPM approves Vera, the department can provide it to qualified employees. This time, the surprising DRP email and tight deadlines made it impossible to obtain prior approval.
Vera is a good choice if Doge offers it.
Delayed retirement
This refers to delaying payment of benefits until the criteria are met, as follows:
If you leave federal services before meeting the age and service requirements for immediate retirement benefits, you may be eligible for extended retirement benefits. In order to qualify, you must complete at least 5 years of credibility civil service. You may receive benefits when you reach one of the following ages:
| Qualification Information | |
| age | Year of service |
| 62 | 5 |
| MRA | 30 |
| MRA | 10 |
If you retire at least 10 years on an MRA but serve for less than 30 years, your income will be reduced by 5% per year each year unless you have 20 years of service to reach 60 or beyond.
What should my federal employee friends do?
If you are already planning to leave work or are about to retire, DRP makes sense. The White House said 40,000 federal workers have accepted DRP so far. About 2% of the federal labor force. It is reduced by 5% to 10% from the target.
A friend at the university worked for the federal government and she wasn’t sure what to do. She was 50 years old and served for 22 years. If she accepts DRP, she will get Vera. However, she doesn’t trust Doge, she loves her job. She doesn’t want to retire.
If I were in her position, my heart would be faster. But that’s me. I don’t like big organizations like government or any company. I’d rather go alone. However, early retirement is not for everyone. Life will be better for those who love work.
Vila
Vera is important because my friend can keep her health insurance and start collecting her pension this year. The pension is about 25% of her current take-home salary. It’s a huge drop in income, but she has enough savings to fire, so she’ll be fine financially.
The only problem is that she can’t get any coke until she is 62 years old. That was 12 years of inflation eroded by pensions. But if she doesn’t accept DRP, she will have to work for another 8 years before she can retire immediately. That’s MRA + 30 years of service. According to the online calculator, pension payments will not be much higher than accepting DRP now.
From a financial standpoint, she should accept DRP and run. She can find a job in the private sector or return to the public sector within 4 years. When I was in technical work, I went through some labor reduction processes. After layoffs, the workplace is different. The friend left, and the rest of the workers were dissatisfied. Everyone has to work harder and their salary is frozen. In a hostile work environment, the quality of life can be terrible. Doge will continue to clear the federal labor force and force more people to leave. Federal workers will continue to receive derogatory emails from the Musk team every week. Why deal with this BS if you don’t need it?
Anyway, she wanted to wait until her department provided Vera without regard to resigning emails. She will rethink it. In the past, the resignation process was different from retirement. Mixing the two is confusing. They can provide a “normal” Vera and attract more participants. Instead, they are driving people to make life-changing decisions, only “Believe me, brother.” What if she resigns and the department does not approve Vera? She won’t pursue it.
Most federal employees are working to improve our country and the world. They chose to work in the public sector because they believe in public services and good government. They don’t make a lot of money in it. It’s a very strange thing about how Musk and the White House treat them. Reducing labor may be better handled. But this is the tech brother culture. If you don’t like it, it’s a dinosaur.
OK, that’s what it is today. Do you know the FBI? What do you think my friends should do?
Excerpted from the first DRP email.
Q: Can I get my second job during the deferred resignation period?
Answer: Absolutely! We encourage you to find a job in the private sector as soon as possible if you wish. The way toward greater prosperity in the United States is to encourage people to move from lower productivity work in the public sector to higher productivity work in the private sector.
Image source: reddit/govfire
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