Other feds just very depressed?

[Anonymous]

Despite having a strong emergency fund, I just calculated what we could get back in FERS contributions if I lose my job and have to compete with thousands of other unemployed federal workers in this area. I can't believe this is real life.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Trump doesn’t want to ever print a negative jobs number…my guess is not filling open positions, having a certain amount of attrition if they mandate RTO and other accounting gimmicks may get you to a massive headline number.

Having government layoffs turn jobs negative isn’t something that will fly.

Also, how will any of this help with inflation or housing costs, etc?

Honestly, nobody cares about budget deficits because they never translate into anything that actually directly impacts anyone.

Of course they translate. The federal government spends more of US GDP servicing debt payments than it does on defense. As the debt grows from borrowing a larger percentage of our GDP will be spent paying that debt, assuming countries even want our debt at a certain point. And more borrowing will push interest rates higher, which will make buying a house with a mortgage more expensive.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Trump doesn’t want to ever print a negative jobs number…my guess is not filling open positions, having a certain amount of attrition if they mandate RTO and other accounting gimmicks may get you to a massive headline number.

Having government layoffs turn jobs negative isn’t something that will fly.

Also, how will any of this help with inflation or housing costs, etc?

Honestly, nobody cares about budget deficits because they never translate into anything that actually directly impacts anyone.

Of course they translate. The federal government spends more of US GDP servicing debt payments than it does on defense. As the debt grows from borrowing a larger percentage of our GDP will be spent paying that debt, assuming countries even want our debt at a certain point. And more borrowing will push interest rates higher, which will make buying a house with a mortgage more expensive.

Then cut Medicare if you’re so bothered

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes, I'm worried. It's hard to figure out how to make a career pivot as a specialist in your 40s, but if all the feds in my field get laid off, the private job market will be gutted, overwhelmed, or both. My spouse only makes 65k in education, and we have kids, so we can't get by without my job long term. I have a project under review right now that could get me fired on its own (totally noncontroversial currently, but doesn't align with Project 2025).

Thinking about boosting the emergency fund over the next few months, what I'll do if they make us sign loyalty pledges, and all that stuff. Planning keeps me out of despair but I'm not really sure how to plan for all of this.

Same here, almost exactly. I'm the high earner & my wife is a teacher only making $64k/year.

I put feelers out with a few close friends who are in the private sector. I need to have a plan and not just wait around to see what the orange turd does.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Despite having a strong emergency fund, I just calculated what we could get back in FERS contributions if I lose my job and have to compete with thousands of other unemployed federal workers in this area. I can't believe this is real life.

I think it would be extremely bad publicity to have thousands of unemployed federal workers and the DMV economy tanking.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, I'm worried. It's hard to figure out how to make a career pivot as a specialist in your 40s, but if all the feds in my field get laid off, the private job market will be gutted, overwhelmed, or both. My spouse only makes 65k in education, and we have kids, so we can't get by without my job long term. I have a project under review right now that could get me fired on its own (totally noncontroversial currently, but doesn't align with Project 2025).

Thinking about boosting the emergency fund over the next few months, what I'll do if they make us sign loyalty pledges, and all that stuff. Planning keeps me out of despair but I'm not really sure how to plan for all of this.

Same here, almost exactly. I'm the high earner & my wife is a teacher only making $64k/year.

I put feelers out with a few close friends who are in the private sector. I need to have a plan and not just wait around to see what the orange turd does.

that's president orange turd. why should high earners be supplemented by the govt, get a job in the free market. you are the real turd

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’m not a political partisan but my agency will likely face massive cuts. I’ve spent two decades in a specialized job and the skills can’t transfer easily elsewhere. Just so incredibly worried now.

Same.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:All the gleeful "cullers" do you have any capacity for empathy? Suppose you, whatever you do, were deemed "cullable" would you feel anything?

Do you dissolve into a puddle of tears every time a company lays off staff? This happens ALL the time in companies and corporations, across entire industries.

Remember covid when people lost their jobs, their businesses, their livelihoods?

The vast majority of Americans are hybrid or in office. Of course it was difficult when we made the adjustment 2.5 YEARS AGO, but most of understand productivity is better when there is some face time. 17% agencies with occupancy rates of 25% or less in 2023 is kind of appalling. There should be some guard rails in place to prevent abuse. That is common sense. And the real estate portfolio should be right sized.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Despite having a strong emergency fund, I just calculated what we could get back in FERS contributions if I lose my job and have to compete with thousands of other unemployed federal workers in this area. I can't believe this is real life.

I think it would be extremely bad publicity to have thousands of unemployed federal workers and the DMV economy tanking.

pretty sure this would be part of the point.

But, I also think that what would happen is that if they fire people, those people will just get sucked up by contractors for the federal government, because the new administration will eventually realize that there is stuff that has to get done and you need people to do it.

it's just like what happened with those USDA agencies that got moved under the prior Trump admin. They lost all institutional knowledge but are back up to their pre-move employment levels. It didn't reduce the federal government, it just made things less efficient.

[Anonymous]

Go back and check some of the other posts, e.g., shutdowns, and you'll see no one here has any clue. So many were clutching their pearls over a shutdown this year they were SURE was going to happen. It didn't.

Same with the previous year.

We'll see what happens. Trump talks a lot out of his a$$, and on the list of things that *will* happen, firing the majority of federal employees is very unlikely. And if you have to return to the office, be glad you got to have the past 4 1/2 years without a commute, saving on those transportation costs, many federal employees saving on before and after care for their school-age kids. Heck a lot of employees didn't even do daycare for their young kids, I was in the meetings listening to the toddler in the background.

You've also saved a lot of leave. Didn't have to take the day off with a sick kid, didn't have to take half a day to take a kid to an appointment, attend a school event, or going to your own appointments.

But if you feel firings will happen, please polish up your resume, update your Linked in and start hustling.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Go back and check some of the other posts, e.g., shutdowns, and you'll see no one here has any clue. So many were clutching their pearls over a shutdown this year they were SURE was going to happen. It didn't.

Same with the previous year.

We'll see what happens. Trump talks a lot out of his a$$, and on the list of things that *will* happen, firing the majority of federal employees is very unlikely. And if you have to return to the office, be glad you got to have the past 4 1/2 years without a commute, saving on those transportation costs, many federal employees saving on before and after care for their school-age kids. Heck a lot of employees didn't even do daycare for their young kids, I was in the meetings listening to the toddler in the background.

You've also saved a lot of leave. Didn't have to take the day off with a sick kid, didn't have to take half a day to take a kid to an appointment, attend a school event, or going to your own appointments.

But if you feel firings will happen, please polish up your resume, update your Linked in and start hustling.

+1000 - it's hard to feel sorry for a group that lost their minds when RTO was floated out as one day per month. Sorry, not sorry. We've all been back at the office for a loonnnnggg time. And didn't have the wonderful benefits of what PP listed - no childcare payments? No commuting costs? Wow.

[Anonymous]

I worried for a day, but then realized it if happens, it happens and there is nothing I can do to prevent it. No use wasting energy on something I cannot control. And for those who are cheering this on, good luck to you on the other side. If 1,000,000 or 500,000 Feds are fired, this will have ripple effects on the DMV- housing tanks, government contracts put on hold, small businesses close due to lack of customers, tax revenue gone for schools, services, roads…list goes on…

No government contractor can just pick up the work of certain agencies no matter how much you believe it can be done. Firing the government workforce will be felt by everyone.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Despite having a strong emergency fund, I just calculated what we could get back in FERS contributions if I lose my job and have to compete with thousands of other unemployed federal workers in this area. I can't believe this is real life.

Good point. Do we think all the fired Feds would still get any FERS contributions back?

[Anonymous]

Have been a fed since 1994 and am retiring next year so I have no dog in this fight. I can say that I have been through at least four of these scares with new admins. Some far more specific and threatening than what we have now. We never had RIFs and my agency is about four times as large.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I worried for a day, but then realized it if happens, it happens and there is nothing I can do to prevent it. No use wasting energy on something I cannot control. And for those who are cheering this on, good luck to you on the other side. If 1,000,000 or 500,000 Feds are fired, this will have ripple effects on the DMV- housing tanks, government contracts put on hold, small businesses close due to lack of customers, tax revenue gone for schools, services, roads…list goes on…

No government contractor can just pick up the work of certain agencies no matter how much you believe it can be done. Firing the government workforce will be felt by everyone.

I would note that most Feds aren't even in the DC area, so while a reduction is likely to be concentrated in DC, it could also happen across the country.