FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Contact: Matt Dorsey
(202) 550-6987
October 10, 2025
Washington, D.C. – Today, the National Federation of Federal Employees (NFFE-IAM), representing 110,000 federal workers across the country, is denouncing the Trump Administration for illegally firing civil servants during the current government shutdown.
“It is appalling that this President would take the unprecedented step of firing federal employees because of the government shutdown,” said NFFE National President Randy Erwin. “The anti-deficiency act prohibits agencies from spending money that Congress has not appropriated. You cannot conduct a federal reduction in force without spending money. Therefore, a reduction in force during a government shutdown is illegal.
“The law is clear as day, and now President Trump is violating it. When the President of the United States blatantly violates a law written in plain English, he is violating his oath of office. With this action, the White House has significantly escalated this shutdown conflict and created a crisis for civil servants and the American people. Essential services will be diminished and federal institutions will be damaged with the loss of skilled workers.
“Federal employees have absolutely nothing to do with this government shutdown. This is the fault of Congressional leaders not coming together to do their job to pass a spending bill. The President is intentionally inflicting pain on hard-working Americans whose only offense is a desire to work for and serve the American people. It is despicable.
“NFFE will be fighting this injustice in the courts, in Congress, at every opportunity to protect the jobs and rights of federal workers.”