Trump extends federal government hiring freeze

WASHINGTON - More cuts to the federal workforce came Thursday night and the Trump administration also says it won't be hiring any new workers anytime soon.

Roughly 1,500 employees are set to be laid off from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, leaving the bureau with just 200 workers. 

And any federal agencies looking to fill vacancies or hire for new positions must continue to wait.

What we know:

A memo sent out Thursday evening by the president says the hiring freeze that was expected to be lifted on Monday continues to apply to all executive departments and agencies regardless of their sources of funding. 

"By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, I hereby extend through July 15, 2025, the freeze on the hiring of Federal civilian employees within the executive branch, as initially directed in the Presidential Memorandum of January 20, 2025 (Hiring Freeze)," the memo reads. 

The overall hiring freeze is now extended to July 15 – although the IRS’ freeze remains indefinite.

There are some exclusions for members of the military, immigration enforcement and in the executive office of the president.

Dig deeper:

Meanwhile, the CFPB was first notified employees on Wednesday in an email from their chief legal officer that described a reduced mission. 

The CFBP was created to enact consumer financial laws, and take action against unfair practices. 

Notices of termination at the agency started going out on Thursday. Employees were told access to systems, including email, will end on Friday.

Since DOGE started the process of reducing the government workforce, hundreds of thousands of federal workers and contractors have been laid off.

The White House says when the deadline does come, should President Trump decide to lift the hiring freeze, federal agencies would.