Over 6,000 IRS employees expected to be terminated by end of week

(CBS News) — Over 6,000 Internal Revenue Service employees are expected to be terminated by the end of this week, according to a source familiar with the agency’s plans. More than half of these employees — over 3,500 — are expected to be from just one division at the IRS, according to text of an email obtained by CBS News and shared by an IRS employee.

The email was sent to managers of the IRS Small Business/Self-Employed Division Wednesday, and it says that the affected SBSE employees will be notified Thursday by the IRS Human Capital Office.

The email, signed by SBSE commissioner Lia Colbert and SBSE deputy commissioner Maha Williams, says that “while details are still developing, we understand that over 3,500 SB/SE probationary hires will be terminated by the end of this week.”

According to the email, the probationary workers who are expected to be fired “were not deemed as critical to filing season.” The layoffs are expected to take place a couple of weeks before the tax filing season reaches peak activity, in mid-March through mid-April. The New York Times was first to report that 6,000 IRS employees are expected to be cut.

According to an email sent to IRS managers in one division Thursday morning, probationary employees terminated were supposed to receive these emails by 12 p.m. ET. Managers were not copied on these emails, but CBS News obtained a copy of the termination memo.

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