Doug Jackson, an IRS employee based in Orlando, is among the 47,000 Central Florida federal workers impacted by the government shutdown that began Oct. 1. Jackson is on furlough without pay.
On Friday, Jackson was home with his wife, when he checked his personal email and learned that he was being fired. Jackson received a Reduction in Force – or RIF -- letter from the Department of Treasury stating his position is being eliminated effective Dec. 9.
He was one of thousands to receive RIF notices on Friday, including 1,446 in the Department of Treasury, according to a federal court filing.
“It's a bit humiliating honestly at first to share with family and friends like, ‘Hey, this happened again. I was fired.’ I mean no one likes to say that, and everyone of course who knows me understands this isn't based off of my performance. It's completely indiscriminate,” he said.
The RIF notice actually makes that clear, telling Jackson that it "does not reflect in any way upon your performance or conduct."
The union representing the employees has already filed a lawsuit.
Veterans generally have more protections
Jackson said about a dozen of his team members, who are spread across the country, received a similar RIF notice. Many, like him, are service-disabled veterans. They’re supposed to be among the last considered for layoffs. RIF rankings are based on several factors, including job performance, tenure and protected status, like military service. Jackson is a service-disabled U.S. Marine Corps veteran of the Iraq War.
“It's not just an assumption or something that's implied or a courtesy that's offered to service-disabled veterans. It is codified into law that we should be protected and the last ones affected by what happened on Friday.”
Second time fired this year
This was the second time in 2025 Jackson was terminated from his position. He was fired at the beginning of the year from his government position by Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency during cuts to reduce the size of the federal workforce. He was later reinstated when layoffs were halted.
Jackson said: “This second time feels a little bit different. I'm not sure if the courts will overturn this decision, but I wasn't terribly surprised and kind of expected it to happen again, to be honest.”
As he anticipated, just a few months after being reinstated, Jackson received the RIF letter.
“I kind of had a sick feeling when the government did shut down because the administration had been threatening to do this,” he said.
Uncertainty over pay
In previous shutdowns, furloughed federal workers were guaranteed back pay once the government reopened. This time, Jackson doesn’t know if that will happen. The Office of Management and Budget published guidance stating that back pay is not guaranteed.
“I'm sad to say, I don't see a win in sight any time soon. The courts may rule in our favor, and in that regard, I would breathe a sigh of relief and know that a lot of my coworkers are going to have their jobs back,” he said.
But personally, that wouldn’t be enough for Jackson.
“I wouldn't feel a sense of vindication if the courts ruled in our favor when we got our jobs back. That's not enough, because when you sign on to be a federal worker, this is not the experience that you sign up for,” he said. “So even if we were rehired, even if there was an apology, which I don't expect, I'm not sure that there is really a win in sight that would be good enough for me.”
Jackson has started looking for other positions but says the job market has been limited. While he would like to continue serving as a federal worker, he doesn’t know if that will even be an option this time around.
