The Internal Revenue Service is set to lay off thousands of employees this week as it becomes the latest focus of DOGE, aligning with the Trump administration's push to reduce the federal workforce. According to the New York Times, the tax-collecting agency will begin cutting 6,000 jobs starting Thursday.
The layoffs will primarily affect newer hires, as the administration aims to target probationary employees across a range of agencies—those who lack the job security of their more experienced counterparts. The layoffs come right in the middle of tax filing season, raising concerns about how they might affect Americans needing help from the IRS in the coming weeks and months.
DOGE Purge Continues
Some Democrats and former IRS officials have warned that cutting staff could result in longer wait times for taxpayers seeking information and may also delay the processing of tax refunds.
As reported by the New York Times, internal messages reveal that IRS managers have instructed employees to return to the office in the coming days and bring their government-issued equipment with them.
IRS employees had been holding their breath and waiting for the job cuts, knowing that Trump and his Republican allies had set their sights on the agency even before DOGE initiated mass layoffs.
The IRS currently employs around 100,000 full-time workers for this fiscal year, an increase from nearly 90,000 last year, according to the annual taxpayer advocate report.
With support from Congress and the Biden administration, the agency significantly expanded its workforce in recent years after being overwhelmed during the Covid-19 pandemic. That crisis led to prolonged wait times, unresponsive customer service, and delayed tax refunds.
The taxpayer advocate report noted that the increase in staffing has led to improvements in telephone support, correspondence, and in-person services. However, the IRS has long been a point of contention for Republicans, who have accused it of politically biased actions against conservatives.
Trump Wrath on IRS
GOP lawmakers and Trump criticized increased IRS funding, arguing that while the previous administration sought more resources to enhance services, it also aimed to expand enforcement efforts.
Although the layoffs are not expected to impact employees deemed "critical" to government operations, it remains unclear who will ultimately lose their jobs.
This week, some IRS employees took to Reddit to support one another and share their anxieties as they await further developments. Managers have reportedly provided little clarity, with some even suggesting that termination notices might be delivered via email.
One employee compared the experience to "waiting for a huge hurricane to hit knowing it's going to rip the roof off your house and leave your family homeless."
Another described the uncertainty as the most difficult aspect, while others admitted to obsessively refreshing their emails over the holiday weekend, fearing the worst.
Meanwhile, CNN reported that a DOGE member has been trying to gain access to the IRS' highly sensitive taxpayer data system, which contains Social Security numbers, banking details, and other private financial information.
