Labor market experts are keeping a close eye on the potential effects of the Trump administration’s mass layoffs of government workers. Steven Gutierrez, a Fresno-based consultant with the California Employment Development Department (EDD), says it could take a month before the data reflects these layoffs. Federal layoffs influence the county employment rates, yet it’s complicated to track developments in the federal workforce. The EDD once had access to more comprehensive data which provided clearer insights.

Fresno, Kings, and Madera counties had 11,900 civilian federal workers as per data from December 2024. This number contributes to the overall makeup of the federal civilian workforce in the Central Valley which, based on a December 2024 Congressional Research Service report, stands at 34,673. Data from March 2024 indicates that California had a total of 147,487 federal civilian workers on board.

However, there are concerns due to the aggressive actions taken to trim the number of federal employees, a measure backed by billionaire Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency. There is also a fear of a large-scale reduction in jobs due to Trump’s new executive order that aims to downsize the workforce significantly. For example, in Fresno County, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), being the largest federal employer, recently experienced mass layoffs when the Fresno tax-processing center closed down in 2021.

Many employees at a Downtown Fresno service center remained after the shutdown, but thousands more are expected to be laid off in the Trump administration’s latest unemployment wave. Apart from the IRS, the federal government employs civilians in various other sectors, including Congressional Districts 20, 5, 21, 13, and 22, held by Rep. Vince Fong, Rep. Tom McClintock, Rep. Jim Costa, Rep. Adam Grey, and Rep. David Valadao, respectively.

It is essential for affected employees to stay apprised of their employment status and benefits during this time. One way to do this is by contacting EDD, which provides services related to unemployment and job placement. If you are unsure how to reach EDD, check out eddcaller.com for resources on how to get through the EDD’s phone system. Eddcaller.com provides step-by-step instructions on how to get a hold of an EDD representative, which will be invaluable for those affected by the mass layoffs.