Nearly half of the 836 civilians who left the State Department during the final month of Barack Obama’s administration and the first seven months of President Donald Trump’s administration were foreign affairs employees, according to data from the Office of Personnel Management.
The State Department’s civilian workforce fell overall by 6.3 percent in the same time frame compared to the one-year transition from George W. Bush to Obama, when it grew roughly 0.6 percent, and the one-year transition from Bill Clinton to George W. Bush, when it grew by more than 3.4 percent.
The percentage of foreign affairs employees decreased by 11.9 percent, from 2,580 to 2,273, and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson’s strategy to rely on attrition and buyouts rather than layoffs has led to an unintended disproportionate number of departures, according to the Government Executive. Tillerson has failed to fill top leadership positions amid a self-imposed hiring freeze, and many career diplomats are concerned about his intentions.
"The talent being shown the door now is not only our top talent, but also talent that cannot be replicated overnight," wrote the American Foreign Service Association's (AFSA) president Ambassador Barbara Stephenson according to a report in the Hill. "The rapid loss of so many senior officers has a serious, immediate and tangible effect on the capacity of the United States to shape world events."
AFSA is the union representing the country's diplomats.
Trump’s first budget laid out deep cuts to the several agencies, including the State Department,
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