The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is rolling out a $50,000 carrot to nudge employees toward the exit, offering the cash to those who resign or take early retirement by March 21, according to an internal memo.
The move, detailed in a February 28 all-staff note from SEC Chief Operating Officer Ken Johnson, aligns with President Donald Trump’s drive to shrink a federal workforce he and billionaire adviser Elon Musk have blasted as bloated and wasteful.
The SEC’s voluntary incentive separation and early retirement programs target permanent staff, letting them cash out, jump to another agency, or retire on the spot.
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The agency is racing to meet Trump’s cost-cutting demands alongside other federal outfits. Bloomberg News first broke the story, spotlighting the memo’s deadline—less than three weeks away.
Trump’s administration, with Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) in tow, has already axed over 100,000 of the government’s 2.3 million civilian workers since January through layoffs and buyouts.
The SEC, no stranger to the chopping block, has separately moved to nix regional office director gigs and last week ordered unionized staff back to the office by mid-April—a mandate the union slammed as illegal, per Reuters’ prior reporting.
The $50,000 offer—a hefty nudge for an agency under pressure—reflects a broader reckoning. Trump’s January pledge to overhaul agencies like the SEC, which polices Wall Street, has hit warp speed, with DOGE’s Musk pushing for leaner operations.
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The SEC’s staff cuts dovetail with moves like Treasury’s rollback of Biden’s BOI rule and a Pentagon cyber pause against Russia, signaling a sweeping rethink of federal priorities.
For SEC workers, it’s decision time: take the money and run or dig in as Trump’s efficiency ax swings. With Musk’s DOGE eyeing more trims, the agency’s memo marks a stark choice—and a glimpse into a government racing to shed weight before the midterms loom.
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