Nearly all direct hires worldwide will be placed on administrative leave this week, the U.S. Agency for International Development announced Tuesday evening.
Following days of criticism by members of the Trump administration, including President Donald Trump, the organization’s website announced the relocation.
According to the notification, all USAID direct hire employees worldwide would be placed on administrative leave starting soon before midnight on Friday, with the exception of those assigned to mission-critical tasks, core leadership, and specially designated programs.
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By 3 p.m., those who are anticipated to continue working will be informed. “The government is working on a plan to return workers who are not in the country back to the United States if contracts are not determined to be essential,” the declaration stated on Thursday.
“Thank you for your service” concludes it.
According to the Congressional Research Service (CRS), direct hires for USAID are civil and foreign service employees. There are additional ways for people to interact with USAID.
Thousands of workers were impacted by the notification given Tuesday night.
According to a January assessment by the research services, USAID employs over 10,000 direct recruits and a category of contractor known as personal services contractors. Approximately two-thirds of employees are employed abroad.
The plan to abolish USAID has been condemned by the American Foreign Service Association, which represents approximately 1,800 foreign service professionals, mostly at more than 80 USAID operations abroad.
Trump signed an executive order halting foreign aid payments for at least 90 days on his first day in office. Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced he was taking over the agency after its headquarters were abruptly closed on Monday. He then named State Department staffer Pete Marocco to lead the organization.
Many Democratic politicians have voiced their outrage, claiming that it is illegal and that USAID was created by a bill that Congress passed. Republicans have also expressed disapproval.
At a fraction of the total federal budget, USAID sends billions of dollars in humanitarian help abroad, which advocates say is a vital lifeline to over 100 countries.
After Congress passed the Foreign Assistance Act in 1961, President John F. Kennedy issued an executive order creating USAID. The establishment of an entity to oversee foreign aid was mandated by the law.
The Foreign Affairs Reform and Restructuring Act of 1998 was approved by Congress and signed into law by Bill Clinton during his presidency, establishing USAID as a separate organization from the State Department.
The Congressional Research Service reportsThis month, it was stated that Trump does not have the power to eliminate USAID and that any such action would need to be approved by Congress.
According to the Congressional Research Service, USAID distributed about $40 billion in total funding to roughly 130 countries in fiscal year 2023. Ukraine, which is waging a horrific war after being invaded by Russia, Somalia, Ethiopia, Jordan, and Congo, was among the top receivers.
The Trump administration pledged to drastically alter the government and drastically reduce foreign aid. According to a White House official, Elon Musk is a special government employee working for the administration. He claimed on X early Monday that he and Trump were “shutting down USAID.” We spent the weekend feeding USAID into the wood chipper, he wrote in a post.
The removal of USAID, according to experts NBC spoke with this week, would make the United States less powerful in South America and Africa and give China and Russia greater sway over other countries.