The second phase of NASA’s deferred layoff program ended on July 25, with about 3,000 employees applying to leave the agency, Bloomberg reported. Earlier, in the first round, which took place at the beginning of the year, 870 employees joined the program. In total, the number of those planning to leave NASA is approaching 4,000, which is about 20% of the agency’s workforce.
The Deferred Resignation Program was implemented in early 2025 under the supervision of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which was temporarily headed by Elon Musk.
Under this program, employees are asked to write a resignation letter, which will take effect only a few months later. This allows the employee to prepare and find a new job. Such employees also receive severance pay.
According to former NASA Acting Administrator Janet Petrov, the main goal of the program is to avoid future forced layoffs. She explained that the agency even tried to get probationary employees to have such a waiver to prevent them from being forced out.
Recall that after Donald Trump returned to power in early 2025, NASA faced a number of problems. The president fired the head of the agency, Bill Nelson, replacing him with a political ally without scientific experience. The politicization of management, budget cuts for climate research, and pressure on scientists began. The Artemis program suffered delays and changes in priorities, and cooperation with other countries decreased. The scientific community began to express concern about NASA's loss of autonomy.