Social Security Announces Workforce and Organization Plans
Reading Time: 2 MinutesLast Updated: February 28, 2025
Consistent with recent executive orders issued by the White House, the Social Security Administration will continue to implement efficiencies and reduce costs, with a renewed focus on mission critical work for the American people.
The agency plans to reduce the size of its bloated workforce and organizational structure, with a significant focus on functions and employees who do not directly provide mission critical services. Social Security recently set a staffing target of 50,000, down from the current level of approximately 57,000 employees. Rumor of a 50 percent reduction is false.
Initial steps to reduce the workforce included offering a limited number of employees the opportunity to leave the agency under the Deferred Resignation Program and Voluntary Early Retirement (VERA).
Yesterday, the agency announced to all employees that Social Security would soon implement agency-wide organizational restructuring that will include significant workforce reductions. The announcement includes offering Voluntary Separation Incentive Payments (VSIP) to all employees on a first come first serve basis and expanding VERA to all employees. Both VERA and VSIP require employees to opt in and to separate from the agency by specific dates.
Social Security anticipates that much of the staff reductions needed to reach the target of 50,000 will come from retirement, VSIP, and resignation. Additional reductions will come from reduction-in-force (RIF) actions that could include abolishment of organizations and positions. RIF also can include directed reassignments from one position to another position in the agency. Agencies are required to submit their RIF plans to the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) by March 13, 2025. No date has been set when a RIF might begin after OPM approves the plan.
SSA has operated with a regional structure consisting of 10 offices, which is no longer sustainable. The agency will reduce the regional structure in all agency components down to four regions. The organizational structure at Headquarters also is outdated and inefficient. SSA will now have seven Deputy Commissioner level organizations.
These steps prioritize customer service by streamlining redundant layers of management, reducing non-mission critical work, and potential reassignment of employees to customer service positions. Also supporting this priority is looking for efficiencies and other opportunities to reduce costs across all spending categories, including information technology and contractor spending. SSA is committed to ensure this plan has a positive effect on the delivery of Social Security services.
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KarenV.
What is happening to the Prohibited Personnel Practices (PPP) vioaltions committed by District Managers?
RP
BBOOOOOOOOOO
Omega
Social Security Offices are already understaffed and have huge backlogs. I cannot believe reducing employees is going to accomplish anything other than make things much worse for elderly and disabled people. It seems like the Trump/Musk administration doesn’t care how many people they hurt, including the federal employees. I am sick to my heart seeing the destruction and chaos they have unleashed on the citizens of America. Please, make it stop.
Clyde G.
The use of this medium to spread propaganda should be illegal, definitely Misleading.
Example:
“…plans to reduce the size of its bloated workforce and organizational structure…”.
Please return to the Professional Organization/Institution that has Functioned do Well.
Clyde Gray
Southington, OH
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Suzy P.
Asst living in indiana medicaid waver enhancement has raised out rent signed by government Holcomb. People cannot afford the rent raise and are trying to find low income housing to move into. It is a sad situation where situation. My husband and I are not allowed to share the same units so to move in we were made to rent a studio and a 1 bedroom like all the other couples that moved also.the studio is just used basically for storage. I know medicaid, is a state issue, but I found out that 10 state declined not to do it. The 41 states including Indiana needs this checked out by DOGE/Musk like immediately or a bunch of senior citizens are going to be on the streets. Thank God I got a place or we would have need on the streets. Help help help the other residents in indiana and other states that adopted this.
Connie G.
I have called SSA several times recently to get help with bank and address changes related to my elderly mother. The wait for a call back was 2-3 hours each time. It already takes weeks to months to get a phone or in person appointment at local offices. How does reducing staff help with these issues?
RP
The money for these programs is coming from OUR hard work. You don’t have the right to put more strain on an already strained system that is supposed to work FOR US THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
JD V.
when the likes of a Donald Dump is allowed to occupy the White House key areas of American
history are bound to undergo attack to benefit the likes of a dictator. This career criminal who dodged the draft based on phony medical tests,
that said he had “bad heels” and paid for by Daddy who was well aware it was a lie, finds it easy to assign young men and women to the draft to help his buddy Putin, A DEDICATED COMMUNIST
Joanna J.
Reducing Technology is not a good idea! Safety and Security and Accessibility are critical.
Reducing the number of offices is not helpful as the people who use your services are senior citizens and disabled people.
It is currently taking 200 days for someone’s disability to be determined. Social Security is already behind. Losing your skilled, knowledgeable and dedicated workers is not going to make things more efficient.
Andwella S.
Y’all are throwing hardworking staff under the bus. You are understaffed. Seniors will suffer from lower processing time and bad service. I don’t want an AI robot. If I contact you there is a reason—I have looked online and need a human being. This is appalling