The Partnership’s Perspective on Executive Orders The Partnership’s Perspective on President Trump’s Executive Orders The Trump administration has issued dozens of executive orders since the president took office on Jan. 20, 2025, many of them pertaining to federal employees. Below you can find information about the EOs that affect our nation’s civil servants, with links to the orders themselves. Also find the Partnership’s response to each EO as well as op-eds and articles on the issues addressed. We will continue to add to the page as needed. MEDIA INQUIRIES If you are member of the media and would like more information, please contact us at: Phone: (202) 935-3742 Email: press@ourpublicservice.org Executive Orders Executive Order Calling for Reductions in Force and Hiring Limits Instructs agencies to reform the federal workforce to maximize efficiency and productivity. The order directs agency heads to prepare for large-scale RIFs in addition to submitting a report that recommends if the agency or any subcomponents should be eliminated or consolidated. Moreover, agencies are now only allowed to hire one new worker for every four who leave, with Department of Government Efficiency team members consulting on hiring decisions. Read our statement Read the order RELEVANT ARTICLES Trump’s Order Puts Musk at Helm of Federal Workforce Overhaul | GovCIO Executive Order on Artificial Intelligence Dictates that the U.S. should remain a dominant leader in artificial intelligence by developing AI systems “free from ideological bias or engineered with social agendas.” The order also clarifies the definition of AI, requires agency leaders to develop and submit an AI action plan and directs the Office of Management and Budget to revise several important guidance documents. Read our statement Read the order Executive Order on Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility in the Federal Government Instructs federal agencies to remove all diversity, equity and inclusion mandates, policies, programs, preferences and activities, as well as to review and revise existing federal employment practices, union contracts and training policies or programs. Read our statement Read the order RELEVANT ARTICLES Biden embraced diversity efforts. Trump has moved to demolish them. | Washington Post Trump calls DEI programs ‘illegal.’ He plans to end them in the federal government | NPR Federal workers placed on leave by Trump’s DEI order are angry and fearful of what lies ahead | NBC News The Biden Administration Can Seize a Once-in-a-Generation Opportunity to Advance Equity. Here’s How. | Government Executive Executive Order on Hiring Freeze Imposes a 90-day hiring freeze on federal civilian positions in the executive branch. The order provides exemptions for positions related to immigration enforcement, national security and public safety. During the 90-day period, the director of the Office of Management and Budget, the director of the Office of Personnel Management and administrator of Department of Government Efficiency will create and submit a plan to reduce the federal workforce. Read our statement Read the order RELEVANT ARTICLES Trump Ordered A Federal Hiring Freeze. Previous Ones Backfired. | HuffPost Hiring reform, SES accountability to get more scrutiny | Federal News Network Lawmakers warn hiring freeze could thwart cyber workforce efforts | Federal News Network Executive Order on Return to In-Person Work Mandates that all executive department and agency heads take “necessary steps” to terminate remote work, requiring employees to return to their duty stations in-person and full-time as soon as possible. Read our fact sheet Read the order RELEVANT ARTICLES For feds, hybrid work policies should focus on delivering results for the public | The Hill OPM directs agencies to quickly comply with Trump’s return-to-office mandate | Federal News Network Telework crackdown: Lawmakers push federal workers to return to the office | DC News Now Federal Workforce Executive Orders Read our Statement Dear Federal Workers: Don’t Quit | Politico For Stunned Federal Workers, Sleeplessness, Anger and Tears | The New York Times Reforming The Federal Hiring Process And Restoring Merit To Government Service (formerly Schedule F) Establishes a new federal employment category, or “schedule,” and calls for the reassignment of career federal employees in policymaking or related roles into this new category. The order gives examples of job responsibilities for these types of roles as a guide for agency heads who are deciding whether to reclassify a position into the new schedule. On April 23, 2025, the administration published a proposed rule to formalize Schedule Policy/Career as outlined in the Executive Order. Read our FAQs Read the order Government won’t ‘get the same quality of folks’ for tech work under Trump policy, experts say | FedScoop Fight or flight: This time, some top federal officials resigned rather than try to fend off a Trump firing | The Boston Globe Trump revives executive order aiming to strip some federal employees of civil service protections | Federal News Network How a pair of executive orders and a memo could fast track the civil service’s politicization | Government Executive Scoop: Trump revamps “Schedule F,” making it easier to cut federal workers | Axios Restoring Accountability for Career Senior Executives Instructs the directors of the Office of Personnel Management and Office of Management and Budget to issue Senior Executive Service performance plans that agencies must adopt. The order also instructs agency heads to reassign SES members in alignment with the president’s agenda and to terminate and reconstitute Executive Resources Boards and Performance Review Boards. Read the order Government’s top career execs face new political oversight as Trump vows to get ‘rid of all the cancer’ | Government Executive Establishing And Implementing The President’s “Department Of Government Efficiency” Creates the Department of Government Efficiency by renaming the U.S. Digital Service to the United States DOGE Service. This order also creates the role of the USDS administrator, creates a U.S. DOGE Service Temporary Organization and directs USDS to launch a software modernization initiative to improve the quality and efficiency of government-wide software and technology systems. Musk’s DOGE Should Work With the Government, Not Against It | Bloomberg ‘Second American Revolution’: The team behind DOGE’s government overhaul | CNN Musk and DOGE See Powers Expand While Remit Stays Shrouded | Bloomberg Read the order Commencing the Reduction of the Federal Bureaucracy Begins reduction of the federal bureaucracy by terminating the Presidential Management Fellows program and Federal Executive Boards. The order also eliminates several government entities, such as the United States Institute for Peace and directs agency leaders to review federal advisory committees for consideration of termination. Trump ends federal leadership program, cutting off key talent pipeline | The Washington Post ‘Salting the earth’: Trump ends presidential management fellowships and federal executive boards | Government Executive Presidential Management Fellows ‘at a loss’ after Trump orders program’s elimination | Federal News Network Read our statement Read the order Other Presidential Actions OPM’s ‘What did you do last week?’ email to federal workers On Feb. 22, 2025, an email from the Office of Personnel Management was sent to executive branch and some judiciary employees with the heading, “What did you do last week?” The email instructed recipients to reply with five bullet points detailing what they accomplished in the week prior. Read our Statement Termination of Federal Employees in Probationary Period On Jan. 20, 2025, the acting director of the Office of Personnel Management issued a memorandum instructing agencies to identify all employees currently in their probationary periods and report them to OPM by Jan. 24, 2025. The memorandum also instructed agencies to “promptly determine whether those employees should be retained at the agency.” Read our fact sheet Read our Statement RELEVANT ARTICLES Trump administration directs agency heads to fire most probationary staff | Washington Post Deferred Resignation On Jan. 28, 2025, the Office of Personnel Management sent federal workers deferred resignation offers. While the stated offer allowed federal employees to voluntarily resign and in return receive pay and benefits through Sept. 30, 2025, many workforce experts remain skeptical of the program’s legality. RELEVANT ARTICLES Federal workers decry Trump attempt to force mass resignations as ‘cruel joke’ | The Guardian Trump administration offers buyouts to federal workers | CNN Federal workers are weighing Trump buyout offer. Who exactly are they? | The Washington Post Removal of Inspectors General In late January 2025, President Trump terminated 17 inspectors general, citing “changing priorities.” These actions were taken without notice given to Congress, which must be told of plans to fire IGs 30 days in advance and be given detailed reasoning for the termination. Read our statement RELEVANT ARTICLES The future of our federal agencies | 1A Are you a federal employee? Right now, there are a lot of questions swirling about what it means to be a federal employee and the role of the career workforce. These issues can be challenging to navigate, especially during the start of a new administration. The Partnership for Public Service is here, as it has been for more than 20 years, to support you—the federal employee—so you can continue to serve the public and uphold your oath of office. View our resources
