Hindustan Times ·
Trump administration paid employees $9.5 billion not to work in 2025: Report
The federal government spent $9.5 billion on compensating employees not working in 2025 due to Musk's DOGE initiatives, drastically increasing paid leave.
The federal government expended $9.5 billion in compensation to employees who were not performing work during 2025, a consequence of Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) initiatives.
According to reporting by The New York Times, which references a recent assessment from the Government Accountability Office, DOGE's deferred resignations initiative resulted in a 435 percent expansion of paid administrative leave throughout 2025. This represents an escalation exceeding six-fold compared to 2023 levels.
