There are about 3,870 employees resigned in NASA, part of a plan which was launched by former US President Donald Trump’s government. This scheme has been made to reduce the number of government departments.
NASA said on Friday that so many people are in the process of resigning, but the final number may be a little more or less as later as some people can withdraw their resignation or their resignations are not acceptable. The purpose of this scheme is to make the functioning of the agency easier, but at the same time maintains the protection of missions and preparations for the Moon and Mars’s future campaigns.
NASA said, “Security is most important for us. We want to move the work as well as move towards the golden phase of space search.”
Got a chance to resign twice
In 2025, NASA gave employees a chance to resign twice under the “Deferred Resignation Program”. The second time chance ended on 25 July. Around 3,000 people, including the first and second rounds, decided to resign themselves. In addition, 870 people had already quit the job under another plan at the time of Trump. After all this, NASA will now have about 14,000 permanent employees. It also includes about 500 retirement in general every year.
Trying to avoid sorting forcibly
NASA officials say that this scheme was brought so that no one has to be forced out of the job in future. In a meeting in June 2025, former NASA acting head Janet Petro said, “We are taking these steps so that no one has to be removed later.” Earlier this year, NASA tried to protect new employees who are in training.
Concern over the loss of information and experience
This scheme has increased concern among the old employees of the space world and NASA. They are afraid that the departure of such experienced people may affect the safety and functioning of the mission. Hundreds of former and current employees warned NASA’s interim chief Scene Dafi by issuing an open letter called Voyzer Declaure, that such a large layoffs could endanger the efficiency of the agency and the safety of missions.
The letter wrote, “Thousands of employees have already resigned or removed, with whom a very special and unique information has also gone, which is difficult to get again.”
