Employee testimony hints at potential CFPB 1700 layoffs by Trump’s administration and Musk’s DOGE

Federal employees from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) have raised concerns that the bureau’s Trump-appointed leadership and Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) intend to execute massive layoffs.

Federal employees said that the mass layoff was disclosed to them in meetings they attended earlier this month with senior CFPB leaders and members of Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). 

Anonymous tip says his team was tasked with employee termination duties

An anonymous employee said that his team was tasked with duties involving the termination of the vast majority of CFPB employees. According to the employee, the team was instructed to initiate the layoff as soon as possible. 

The employee explained that the two entities had orchestrated a plan to eliminate the employees in three different phases with the first layoff involving probationary and term employees. The anonymous tip said that the second layoff will see about 1200 employees going home leaving a shell with a few hundred workers. The employee further highlighted that the Bureau would eliminate the remaining employees within 90 days.

“My team was directed to assist with terminating the vast majority of CFPB employees as quickly as possible. Finally, the Bureau would ‘reduce altogether’ within 60-90 days by terminating most of its remaining staff.”

Anonymous employee

Since operatives from DOGE arrived at the Bureau this month, the agency has shuttered its Washington headquarters and initiated the first round of layoffs, sending about 200 probationary and term employees home. The employees who remained after the first layoff were instructed to stop working until a March 3 hearing. 

The employees filed a trove of statements late Thursday. The filings were made in the legal proceedings initiated by a CFPB union. The case suspended acting Director Russell Vought’s moves to shutter the agency.

The documents show an apparent disconnect between some of the external messaging from Vought and the behind-the-scenes activity at the bureau. Vought pushed back against the idea that he planned to eliminate the CFPB through a motion filed recently. He wrote that the logic of running a seamless and efficient bureau is that  CFPB will continue to exist.

Trump’s administration plans to shrink CFPB employee count to five

Another anonymous tip hinted that Trump’s administration plans to lower the CFPB to the barest minimum staffing required under the law. The Bureau only needs 5 employees. The tip mentioned that the staff were briefed by Senior Executives that the CFPB employees will be laid off except for five statutorily mandated positions. 

The employee added that one senior executive said the Bureau will become a room at the Federal Reserve, the White House, or the Treasury with only five individuals and a phone. Elon Musk confirmed the Bureau’s crackdown after he tweeted “CFPB RIP” on 8th February this year. 

CFPB RIP 🪦

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 7, 2025

Additionally, the agency has constantly received criticism from financial institutions and republicans who called it a rogue agency that exploits its legal authority to punish companies.

Senior CFPB staff appeared to defer to DOGE employees for critical matters in several instances. DOGE operative Jordan Wick stated that the efficiency department wanted a massive round of layoffs by Feb. 14. 

According to the anonymous employee, the Bureau intended to comply and fire the vast majority of the remaining employees on the given date. The employee added that a Court’s order temporarily prohibited the layoff from happening. 

The efficiency department has been on the move to cut federal expenses and wastage of government resources. Since its establishment, the department has targeted several agencies including the Department of Defense, Internal Revenue Service (IRS), National Institutes of Health, National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the Treasury, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), as well as the Department of Education.

DOGE’s activities have faced criticism and pushback from some government departments and federal workers’ unions. For instance, the unions sued the Treasury Department, arguing that the agency had illegally granted Musk access to sensitive personal and financial information including Social Security benefits and tax refunds. 

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