WASHINGTON 鈥� Local聽officials were happy with the Trump administration鈥檚 decision this week to , but plans for a 鈥渕ore strategic,鈥� 鈥渕ore surgical鈥� reduction in the workforce raised concerns.
The president of one union representing federal workers was skeptical about such an approach鈥檚 effectiveness, claiming that any reduction in workforce would 鈥渟imply shift” work to the private sector.
Rep. Barbara Comstock, a Republican representing Virginia鈥檚 10th District (and thousands of federal employees), was pleased to see an end to the freeze, which the president heralded just days after his inauguration.
The congresswoman, who faces , cautioned that 鈥渁ny reorganizing should be done strategically, not with freezes or across-the-board cuts.鈥�
鈥淭he federal budget cannot be balanced on the backs of our dedicated federal workforce,鈥� she said.
Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe shared Comstock鈥檚 concerns about the plan鈥檚 potential impact on the region. Calling the freeze a 鈥渕isguided policy,鈥� the Democrat said that the benefits of ending it would be canceled out by the new plans.
鈥淪lashing the federal workforce in the manner the president has proposed will hamstring functions of government, harm employee morale and deal a serious blow to the Virginia economy,鈥� he said.
And U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., said it had been a mistake for the president to impose a hiring freeze without consulting with the affected agencies. 鈥淭he administration should work with our federal workforce 鈥斅爊ot against them 鈥� to achieve efficiency,鈥� he added.
The scope of the administration鈥檚 goal underscores the necessity of better cooperation with federal workers. A former official with the Office of Management and Budget, Robert Shea, 聽that such an ambitious reorganization would be 鈥渓ike creating the Department of Homeland Security times 25, at least.鈥�
And despite the promise of , there is skepticism about how many workers will still be around to benefit from a raise.
The proposed reduction opens the door 鈥渢o increased contracting out of agency functions and services,鈥� said Tony Reardon, the president of the National Treasury Employees Union, which represents 150,000 employees at 31 federal agencies and departments.
鈥淪hrinking workforces and increasing contracting out is not a recipe for improving government operations,鈥� Reardon said. 鈥淚t is a recipe for disaster.鈥�
Nonetheless, the president said, there is still fat to be cut.
鈥淏illions and billions of dollars are being wasted on activities that are not delivering results for hardworking American taxpayers,鈥� Trump said Wednesday. 鈥淥ur moral duty to the taxpayer requires us to make our government leaner and more accountable. We must do a lot more with less.鈥�
