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The news comes after President Donald Trump and Congress failed
to strike an agreement to fund federal operations, and the
government shutdown has entered its second week, with no
discernible endgame in sight.
The agency's initial Lapsed Appropriations Contingency Plan,
which provided for the first five business days of operations,
stated that the department would remain open using Democrats’
Inflation Reduction Act funds.
Now, only 39,870 employees, or 53.6%, will remain working as the
shutdown continues. It is unclear which workers will remain on
the job.
Doreen Greenwald, president of the National Treasury Employees
Union, said in a statement that taxpayers should expect
increased wait times, backlogs and delays implementing tax law
changes as the shutdown continues.
“Taxpayers around the country will now have a much harder time
getting the assistance they need, just as they get ready to file
their extension returns due next week," she said. “Every day
these employees are locked out of work is another day of
frustration for taxpayers and a growing backlog of work that
sits and waits for the shutdown to end.”
She urged the Trump administration and Congress to "reach an
agreement that reopens government and restores the services that
Americans need and deserve."
The notice to workers states that furloughed workers and those
who remain on the job will receive back pay once the shutdown
ends. This is notable since the Republican administration on
Tuesday warned of no guaranteed back pay for federal workers
affected by a government shutdown.
Last week, Trump said roughly 750,000 federal workers nationwide
were expected to be furloughed across agencies, with some
potentially fired by his administration.
Representatives from the IRS, the Treasury and the White House
did not comment on the furlough plans.
Earlier this year the IRS embarked on mass layoffs, spearheaded
by the Department of Government Efficiency, affecting tens of
thousands of workers. At the end of 2024, the agency employed
roughly 100,000 workers — and currently that hovers around
75,000.
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