The U.S. Justice Department on Tuesday adjusted its count of federal employee layoffs as a result of the current government shutdown, suggesting that the Trump administration’s prior projections of job cuts was slightly overstated.
According to a court filing by the department, 4,108 federal workers have been relieved of their duty since Oct. 1 at the start of the shutdown. The figure represents a downward revision from last week’s estimate of at least 4,278 in a separate filing.
The layoffs cover only a small part of the federal government’s civilian workforce of about 2 million at the start of the Trump administration in January.
The Trump administration and Republicans have accused Democrats of not wanting to hold talks on reopening the government, while Democrats have said that any reopening plans need to also include an extension of COVID-era health care subsidies. GOP lawmakers say the subsidies should be considered after the government reopens.
The federal government has shut down 15 times since 1981. In each instance, the shutdown included a furlough of hundreds of thousands of workers.
Federal employee unions have filed lawsuits to stop the firings. As it stands, agencies cannot perform their operations without appropriations from Congress, though there are exemptions for national security and critical workers involving life and property.
The unions contend that the mass terminations are not necessary, despite the government closure, since most federal workers are currently on unpaid furlough.
A federal judge is expected to preside over the case on Oct. 15.
At a rally on Tuesday morning, lawmakers from Maryland and Virginia criticized the layoffs, saying they were hurting their constituents. Approximately 20 percent of the federal government’s workforce lives in Washington, Maryland, and Virginia, according to federal data.
