By Victoria Albert, Ken Thomas and Lindsay Ellis

The Trump administration is aiming to cut tens of thousands of workers from the Department of Veterans Affairs, officials said Wednesday.

Veterans Affairs Secretary Doug Collins said the department would conduct a broad review of its organization and operations, with a goal of cutting its workforce from about 470,000 to approximately 398,000 people. In a video posted to X, Collins said the cuts wouldn't affect healthcare or benefits for veterans and beneficiaries, adding the department would still be hiring for mission-critical roles.

"For many years, veterans have been asking for a more efficient, accountable and transparent VA," Collins said. "This administration is finally going to give the veterans what they want."

Veterans Affairs is one of many departments the Trump administration has targeted for cuts. Efforts by the Elon Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, have resulted in thousands of layoffs across the federal government -- though several lawsuits have challenged the administration's ability to make such cuts.

The Veterans Affairs cuts are slated to occur in August, according to a Tuesday memo from Christopher Syrek, the department's chief of staff. Veteran Affairs will join with DOGE to "move out aggressively, while taking a pragmatic and disciplined approach to identify and eliminate waste, reduce management and bureaucracy, reduce footprint, and increase workforce efficiency."

Last month, the agency said, more than 1,400 employees were terminated because they were on probation, a designation for workers often in their first year or two in a new role. In January, the agency said it had fired several dozen employees working on diversity, equity and inclusion issues.

Sen. Richard Blumenthal, a Connecticut Democrat who serves as the ranking member of the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee, said the plan outlined in the memo would undermine the PACT Act, a law passed in 2022 that expanded healthcare and benefits for veterans.

"Their plan prioritizes private sector profits over veterans' care, balancing the budget on the backs of those who served," Blumenthal said. "It's a shameful betrayal, and veterans will pay the price for their unforgivable corruption, incompetence and immorality."

The American Federation of Government Employees union, which represents more than 300,000 Veteran Affairs employees, said the layoffs will result in longer wait times for veterans.

"Veterans and their families will suffer unnecessarily, and the will of Congress will be ignored," said Everett Kelley, the union's president.

Write to Victoria Albert at victoria.albert@wsj.com and Ken Thomas at ken.thomas@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

March 05, 2025 19:12 ET (00:12 GMT)

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