U.s.-funded International Broadcaster Sends New Round Of Resignation Offers To Employees

U.S. Agency for Global Media, which runs broadcasts including Voice of America, on Thursday offered employees a “deferred resignation program,” pushing them to resign as involuntary reductions in force stall in court.

“As part of the broader workforce reforms initiated by President Trump, the federal government is undergoing significant restructuring to enhance efficiency, accountability, and performance,” U.S. Agency for Global Media wrote in an email to employees, sent by their Human Resources arm and obtained by POLITICO. “The agency is offering another opportunity for employees to voluntarily transition out of federal service through the Deferred Resignation Program.”

The agency’s latest move to offer buyouts to employees, comes as Judge Royce Lamberth of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia is set to rule in early March on the legality of USAGM CEO Kari Lake’s authority and earlier actions attempting to lay off a majority of the staff for the government-funded broadcaster, as well as the future of the lawsuit.

The agency gave employees a March 9 deadline to accept the package, just before Lamberth’s expected ruling. The notice comes two weeks after Congress approved funding for VOA that amounts to four times the amount that Lake asked.

For months, Lamberth has been urging Lake to present a plan for the future of VOA.

And now, new funding from Congress has increased the pressure for Lake to lay out her plan to both Lamberth and Congress.

Publicly, she has claimed to be on the path of “rightsizing” VOA and its parent company.

In a statement following the publication of this story, Lake said: “This is about accountability to American taxpayers. Every other major news organization has cut excess staff and streamlined operations in recent years. Taxpayer-funded, government-run media should be no exception. We are reducing a bloated agency and returning it to its core mission while providing employees with generous support as they pursue rewarding new opportunities in the private sector.”

Ahead of the announcement, Lake took to X to give her employees a preview of the new offer. “Good Morning! Employees of @USAGM, please check your email,” she wrote. “Have a great day!”

VOA employees view the new offer as a sign that Lake may lose in court.

“If they thought they were winning they wouldn’t be bribing us to quit,” said a VOA employee on administrative leave and granted anonymity because of fear of recriminations.

Patsy Widakuswara, an employee currently on administrative leave and the main plaintiff in the ongoing lawsuit between Lake and VOA employees, said in a text: “This latest move is not going to deter us from moving forward with the next phase of our fight: ensuring that VOA serves our global audience beyond the handful of languages current;y on air, delivering journalism, not propaganda.”