Approximately 500 employees at the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) have agreed to depart from the agency following a $50,000 buyout and deferred-resignation offer, as reported by individuals familiar with the situation who requested anonymity due to the sensitivity of the information.
Significant departures are expected from the divisions of enforcement, examinations, and the office of the general counsel, according to these sources. The number of employees accepting the buyout might increase before the Friday deadline for the $50,000 incentive. Some of these resignations may occur later in the year.
These departures account for about 10% of the SEC’s workforce, which comprises approximately 5,000 employees. Concerns have been raised by former staff members about the agency’s capacity to manage a potential financial crisis due to this reduction in personnel.
Eligibility for the buyout requires employees to have been with the SEC since before January 24. They must voluntarily exit the agency via resignation, transfer to another agency, or immediate retirement. Those who return to the SEC within five years after accepting the buyout must reimburse the incentive in full.
An SEC spokeswoman declined to comment on the expected staff reductions.
Further cost-cutting measures are on the SEC’s agenda, including the termination of leases for its offices in Los Angeles and Philadelphia. The General Services Administration is also considering ending the lease for the Chicago office, although this action might entail a substantial financial penalty, as reported by Bloomberg.
Regional offices, which handle a considerable share of examinations and enforcement operations, are affected by these cuts as well. Senior positions in these offices have been reduced, although current incumbents are not being forced out.
There has been criticism of the SEC’s cost-cutting measures, which some argue contradict the administration’s goal of reducing federal government expenses.
Columbia Law School professors John Coates, John Coffee Jr., James Cox, Merritt Fox, and Joel Seligman criticized the Trump administration’s approach in a blog post. They pointed out that the SEC has traditionally generated more revenue in fees than its operational costs.
Reuters reported earlier on Friday about the impending departures, and the story was initially published on Fortune.com.
