The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has announced its plan to reduce its workforce by nearly 30,000 employees by the end of fiscal year 2025. This decision eliminates the need for a large-scale reduction-in-force (RIF), which had been under consideration to decrease staff levels by up to 15%. The reduction will be achieved through a federal hiring freeze, deferred resignations, retirements, and normal attrition.
As of January 1, 2025, the VA employed approximately 484,000 individuals. By June 1, this number had decreased to about 467,000—a reduction of nearly 17,000 employees. The department anticipates that an additional 12,000 employees will leave by September 30 through normal attrition or voluntary early retirement authority.
The VA assures that these staff reductions will not affect veteran care or benefits. Mission-critical positions are exempt from the Deferred Resignation Program (DRP) and Voluntary Early Retirement Authority (VERA), with more than 350,000 positions also exempt from the federal hiring freeze.
Under President Trump and Secretary Doug Collins, the VA's performance metrics have shown improvement. The disability claims backlog has decreased by nearly 30%, following a previous increase during the Biden Administration. The VA processed a record number of disability claims in fiscal year 2025—reaching one million claims by February and two million by June.
Reforms have been implemented to streamline survivor benefit processes and accelerate the deployment of an integrated electronic health record system. Additionally, treatment for gender dysphoria is being phased out as part of recent reforms.
Secretary Collins stated: “Since March, we’ve been conducting a holistic review of the department centered on reducing bureaucracy and improving services to Veterans.” He added that while a department-wide RIF is no longer necessary, efforts to improve services will continue with new ideas aimed at better serving veterans.
Further reforms under consideration include centralizing administrative functions across various VA administrations to enhance operational efficiency. Plans are underway to consolidate payroll systems across all VA Medical Centers (VAMCs) using the VA Time and Attendance System.
