Federal Public Service Sheds 2,555 Workers Through Buyouts

Thousands of federal employees have accepted departure options as Ottawa moves to cut 16,000 positions by 2029.

Updated on Nov. 3, 2026 in Employment

Bold flat-color editorial illustration of an empty office chair before a bare desk beside a tall window, evoking a shrinking federal workforce. — Ottawa has cut 2,555 federal public service jobs through voluntary buyouts so far, as part of a plan to eliminate 16,000 positions by 2029. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

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2,555 public servants voluntarily left the federal public service through workforce adjustment, part of plans to cut 16,000 full-time equivalent positions. More than 25,000 executives and non-executive employees have received workforce adjustment notices.

Why it matters

The cuts are being made under the Comprehensive Expenditure Review and are intended to trim the size of the federal workforce by 2029. The departures affect federal employees across Canada and the public services that depend on them.

As of October 14, 4,854 employees who received workforce adjustment notices had selected a departure option, and 2,555 were accepted for voluntary departure. The final number of positions eliminated is still unknown.

The players

Government of Canada

The federal government that introduced the Canada Strong Budget 2025 and the plan to cut 16,000 full-time equivalent positions.

Employment and Social Development Canada

A federal department that has 5,313 positions identified for elimination under the workforce adjustments.

The details

Federal departments were required to set up voluntary departure programs when five or more employees in the same group, level and unit were notified their jobs may be affected, and employees had 30 days to choose an option. Another 12,000 positions, including 350 executive roles, are being eliminated through attrition and early retirement packages, while 986 employees left through the alternation program.

November 2025: Canada Strong Budget 2025 released with workforce cut plans.
July 24: Deadline for Early Retirement Incentive program applications.
October 13: 9,694 early retirement applications confirmed.
October 14: 4,854 employees had selected a departure option.
2029: Target year for trimming the federal workforce.

Roadmap

The reductions are being carried out under the Comprehensive Expenditure Review, which set the 16,000-position target within the Canada Strong Budget 2025. The current departures put the federal government on track toward its stated goal of a smaller workforce by 2029.

Federal employees who received workforce adjustment notices must decide among the available departure options within the set window. Canadians who rely on federal services may see changes as the public service shrinks toward its 2029 target.

The takeaway

Federal workforce reductions are being carried out through voluntary departures, attrition and early retirement rather than only through layoffs. Readers following public-sector employment should watch how the remaining positions are eliminated before 2029.