The United States experienced a historic and rapid contraction throughout the 2025 calendar year according to recent data. A Pew Research Center analysis indicates the federal workforce shrank by 10.3 percent during this intense twelve-month period. This reduction represents a net loss of nearly 238,000 workers who were previously employed by the United States government. These figures stem from a detailed review of recently published government data covering the executive branch of the government.
The statistics reveal a dramatic shift in the landscape of federal employment compared to the previous year of 2024. A total of 348,219 people left federal service last year through various means including quitting, retiring, or being laid off. This number represents a staggering 80.8 percent increase in departures when compared to the employment data from the prior year. Simultaneously, the government significantly slowed its hiring process for new employees across nearly every major department and agency.
Only 116,912 people started working for the federal government in 2025, which is a very low number for the nation. This hiring figure represents a 55.6 percent decrease from the recruitment levels recorded during the previous year of 2024. Consequently, the combination of high departures and low hiring led to the significant net decrease in the total headcount. This trend suggests a fundamental change in how the federal government manages its personnel and operational requirements daily.
Younger Workers and the Impact of Probationary Status
The job losses affected a broad swath of federal workers regardless of their educational attainment or their specific appointment type. However, the Trump administration’s job cuts disproportionately impacted younger and less experienced individuals within the various federal agencies. People younger than 35 years old made up 18 percent of the workforce at the end of 2024. By the end of 2025, this demographic figure had slipped to just 16.8 percent of the total federal workforce.
Workers with less than two years of service experienced an even more dramatic decline in their overall numbers last year. This group fell from 16.2 percent of the federal workforce to a mere 10.3 percent by December of 2025. Most of these workers were likely still on their initial probation and lacked full civil service protections during the cuts. This lack of protection made them easier targets for the administration’s aggressive efforts to reduce the size of government.
Furthermore, the data suggests that the administration prioritized the removal of those with the least amount of seniority. This strategy allowed for a rapid reduction in headcount without navigating the complex legal protections afforded to more senior employees. Interestingly, there were few noteworthy distinctions in job losses among people with different levels of higher educational attainment. The focus remained primarily on the length of service and the specific agency where the individuals were currently employed.
USAID and Education: Agencies Facing Steepest Reductions
Among major federal agencies, the Education Department and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) saw the steepest cuts. These two organizations were among President Donald Trump’s earliest and most frequent targets for significant budgetary and staffing reductions. The staff at the Education Department shrank by 42.6 percent between December 2024 and December of the next year. Its workforce dropped from nearly 4,300 employees to fewer than 2,500 workers in a very short amount of time.
Even more striking was the near-total elimination of the U.S. Agency for International Development during the 2025 fiscal year. USAID’s headcount plummeted from just under 4,900 employees to a skeleton staff of only 370 individuals across the world. This reduction represents a 92.4 percent decrease, effectively removing the agency’s ability to perform its traditional international development missions. The scale of these cuts highlights the administration’s commitment to dismantling agencies it perceives as unnecessary or wasteful.
Other agencies also faced deep cuts that significantly altered their ability to provide services to the American public and others. The parent agency for the National Endowments for the Arts and the Humanities experienced a 56.6 percent staff reduction. AmeriCorps, another frequent target of political criticism, saw its workforce shrink by 43.6 percent during the 2025 calendar year. These cuts targeted cultural, educational, and service-oriented programs that have long been subject to intense partisan debate.
Broad Reductions Across Science and International Broadcasting
The Small Business Administration was another agency that saw its total headcount fall significantly during the administration’s first year. Its workforce decreased by 32.9 percent as the government moved to reduce the footprint of various small business support programs. Similarly, the agency overseeing Voice of America and other international broadcasters saw a staff reduction of 32.7 percent last year. This cut suggests a major shift in how the United States approaches its international communication and media influence strategies.
The National Science Foundation, which supports a vast amount of American research, also faced a 30.3 percent staff decrease. This reduction could have long-term implications for the nation’s scientific competitiveness and the management of various federal research grants. Additionally, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) saw its headcount fall by 28.8 percent during the 2025 period. The CFPB is an independent agency that organizationally sits within the Federal Reserve, making its cuts particularly noteworthy.
These broad-based reductions across science, broadcasting, and financial regulation indicate a government-wide effort to decrease the regulatory state. By reducing the number of employees, the administration can effectively limit the operational capacity of these agencies without passing laws. Thus, the staffing data provides a clear roadmap of the administration’s policy priorities during its first year in power. The focus appears to be on shrinking the workforce in areas related to social services and scientific research.
The Enforcement Exception: Growth at ICE and CBP
While most of the federal government was shrinking, immigration-enforcement components within the Department of Homeland Security saw notable growth. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) added approximately 7,500 workers to its ranks during the 2025 calendar year. This addition represents a 36.1 percent increase, bringing the total ICE workforce to 28,272 employees by the end of December. This growth aligns with the administration’s stated goals of increasing deportations and strengthening internal immigration enforcement across the country.
Customs and Border Protection (CBP) also saw its numbers rise from 66,613 employees to 67,587, an increase of 1.5 percent. While this growth is modest compared to ICE, it stands in stark contrast to the massive losses seen elsewhere. Most other components within the Department of Homeland Security, however, were not spared from the general trend of job losses. For instance, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) saw a 4.3 percent decrease in its total number of federal workers.
Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) experienced a 11.4 percent reduction, while the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) lost 14 percent. These losses within the same department suggest a targeted approach that prioritizes enforcement over services and emergency management functions. Consequently, the internal structure of Homeland Security has shifted significantly toward a more enforcement-heavy model of operational focus. This redistribution of personnel reflects the administration’s broader national security and border policy objectives for the next few years.
Data Redactions and OPM Transparency Concerns
The analysis of federal workforce trends in 2025 is somewhat limited by significant redactions in the official government data. Several categories within the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) dataset are heavily redacted, which complicates a full public understanding. For instance, nearly half of the records from December 2025 do not list worker job locations or pay details. This lack of transparency makes it difficult to determine exactly where the job losses are occurring geographically or socioeconomically.
Furthermore, while the dataset covers most of the executive branch, several key agencies are omitted entirely from the public records. These omissions include various intelligence agencies and most of the Executive Office of the President, with some notable exceptions. The dataset does not include Congress, legislative agencies, the federal judiciary, or quasi-independent entities like the U.S. Postal Service. Therefore, the total number of individuals leaving federal service across all branches could be even higher than reported.
The absence of intelligence agency data is particularly significant given the sensitive nature of their work and current political tensions. Without these records, it is impossible to know if the same downsizing trends are occurring within the nation’s security apparatus. The redaction of job locations also prevents an analysis of how these cuts might be affecting specific states or cities. This data gap raises questions about the administration’s commitment to public transparency during a period of historic government restructuring.
The Future of the Federal Service
The rapid 10.3 percent decrease in the federal workforce marks a fundamental shift in the nature of American governance. By targeting younger workers and those on probation, the administration is potentially hollowing out the future of the civil service. This “brain drain” could lead to a significant loss of institutional knowledge and technical expertise in the coming decades. Furthermore, the near-elimination of USAID suggests a massive withdrawal from traditional international leadership roles and global humanitarian efforts.
The consolidation of personnel within ICE and CBP indicates a government that is increasingly focused on enforcement and security. This shift comes at the expense of agencies dedicated to education, science, and environmental protection, which faced massive cuts. The redaction of pay and location data suggests a desire to shield the specifics of these cuts from public scrutiny. Ultimately, the 2025 data reveals a government that is not just smaller, but fundamentally different in its operational priorities. These changes will likely have long-lasting effects on how federal services are delivered to the American people and the world.
Q&A Section: Understanding the 2025 Workforce Shifts
Q: Which agency saw the largest percentage decrease in staff during 2025?
A: The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) saw a 92.4 percent decrease, leaving only 370 employees.
Q: How did the total number of people leaving the federal government change?
A: Departures increased by 80.8 percent from 2024, with over 348,000 people leaving federal employment in 2025.
Q: Did any federal agencies actually grow during this period?
A: Yes, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) grew by 36.1 percent, adding about 7,500 new workers to its total.
Q: What happened to the Department of Education’s workforce?
A: The Education Department’s staff shrank by 42.6 percent, dropping from nearly 4,300 to fewer than 2,500 employees.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Why were younger workers hit harder by the job cuts?
Many were on probation and lacked full civil service protections, making them easier to remove than more senior staff members.
What is the net loss of federal workers for the year?
The federal workforce saw a net loss of nearly 238,000 workers, representing a 10.3 percent overall shrinkage.
Are intelligence agencies included in this data?
No, intelligence agencies and several other executive entities are omitted from the Office of Personnel Management’s public dataset.
How did hiring change in 2025? Hiring decreased by 55.6 percent, with only 116,912 people starting new jobs in the federal government last year.
What happened to the National Science Foundation (NSF)?
The National Science Foundation’s workforce was reduced by 30.3 percent as part of the broader government-wide personnel cuts.
Is the U.S. Postal Service part of these headcount figures? No, the dataset excludes quasi-independent entities like the U.S. Postal Service and the Federal Reserve.