Federal Managers Association

Press Release

• FMA GRAVELY CONCERNED BY “FORK IN THE ROAD” SEPARATION PLAN - January 29, 2025

• Alexandria, VA – The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) sent a mass email to all federal employees offering buyouts and a “deferred resignation” program if they choose to resign before February 6, 2025. The email, titled “Fork in the Road,” states “at this time, we cannot give you full assurance regarding the certainty of your position or agency,” if employees do not accept the deferred resignation program offer. FMA National President Craig Carter made the following statement in response to this development:

  “On behalf of the managers and supervisors currently serving our nation in the federal government, and whose interests are represented by the Federal Managers Association (FMA), we vehemently oppose this frightening, misguided program aimed at nearly the entire federal workforce. It is unprecedented, impulsive, and dangerous. It jeopardizes national security, food safety, and threatens the customer service to all American taxpayers from the Internal Revenue Service, the Social Security Administration, and every other agency that provides critical, congressionally mandated services to the country.
  
  “We are obviously concerned about every federal manager who received this blanket buyout, offering civil servants one week to decide their future with the federal government. We are also concerned this action only stirs chaos and threatens to significantly negatively impact the essential services our agencies provide to all Americans. The government already suffers from recruitment and retention issues, and this will only exacerbate these concerns.
  
  “We support excellence and accountability in the civil service and ensuring all Americans receive the services they need. We urge the administration to reconsider this policy and rescind this enormous, ill-considered separation plan.”
  
  

##