March 11 (UPI) — Nearly half of the U.S. Department of Education’s staff will be placed on administrative leave as Education Secretary Linda McMahon follows through on Trump administration plans to eliminate the federal agency.
The downsizing is part of the Education Department’s “final mission,” McMahon announced Tuesday in a news release.
“Today’s reduction in force reflects the Department of Education’s commitment to efficiency, accountability and ensuring that resources are directed where they matter most — to students, parents and teachers,” McMahon said.
The downsizing announced Tuesday affects 1,315 workers, The Hill reported.
The federal agency told workers to leave their respective offices by 6 p.m. EDT Tuesday and announced the offices will be closed on Wednesday due to security reasons.
The Department of Education closures on Wednesday include all regional locations and offices in the National Capital Region, ABC News reported.
The workforce reduction affects all divisions within the Department of Education and requires some to undergo significant reorganization to better serve students, parents, teachers and taxpayers, McMahon announced.
When President Donald Trump took office in January, the Education Department employed 4,133 workers.
Tuesday’s workforce reduction lowers that number to 2,183 and includes nearly 600 who accepted voluntary resignations opportunities and retirement, McMahon said.
Among those, 259 accepted deferred resignation and 313 accepted a voluntary separation incentive payment.
The remaining workers affected by the downsizing announced Tuesday will be placed on administrative leave starting March 21.
All affected workers will receive their full pay and benefits support until June 9 and either severance pay or additional retirement benefits based on their respective lengths of employment with the Education Department.
The National Education Association is the nation’s largest labor union, and officials there warned the Education Department’s downsizing will have a negative effect on education quality.
“The real victims will be our most vulnerable students,” NEA President Becky Pringle said Tuesday in a news release.
“Gutting the Department of Education will send class sizes soaring, cut job training programs, make higher education more expensive and out of reach for middle-class families, take away special education services for students with disabilities and gut student civil rights protections,” Pringle said.
She accused McMahon of firing workers without cause and said, “dedicated public servants who help ensure our nation’s students have access to the programs and resources to keep class sizes down and expand learning opportunities for students so they can grow into their full brilliance.”
McMahon disagreed with Pringle’s statements on the Education Department’s downsizing, which Trump said has failed in its mission to maintain a high education level since the department’s creation in 1980 and the nation spending at least twice as much per pupil on education compared to other nations.
“I appreciate the work of the dedicated public servants and their contributions to the department,” McMahon said. “This is a significant step toward restoring the greatness of the United States’ education system.”
She said the Education Department will continue to deliver on all statutory programs, including formula funding, student loans, Pell grants, funding for special needs students and competitive grant-making.
McMahon on March 4 said the Education Department has received more than $1 trillion in funding from taxpayers since its inception, but “student outcomes have consistently languished.”
