The Trump administration is proposing a new rule on how the government conducts mass layoffs after last year’s cuts led by Trump adviser Elon Musk were mired in legal challenges and confusion. The Office of Personnel Management, the federal government’s HR arm, published a proposed rule Thursday that it says will streamline the layoff process and put a new emphasis on job performance rankings rather than seniority. If finalized, the proposed rule would require agencies to sort employees with a rubric that prioritizes their three most recent ratings, with a preference for veterans. The proposed rule also would exclude probationary employees from layoffs, after the Trump administration had conducted a massive purge of those employees last year. The administration has also proposed transferring responsibility for reviewing federal employee appeals of proposed layoffs.

Source: Washington Post March 06, 2026 00:00 UTC