Philadelphia man among over 35,000 former federal workers waiting for full retirement benefits
The fact is, the federal workforce is smaller than it was two years ago. Since January 2025, more than 275,000 federal workers have been eliminated, and one reason for that was incentives from the Trump administration.
Now, the U.S. Office of Personnel Management is experiencing a historic surge in retirement applications, and more than 35,000 former government employees are currently waiting for their full retirement benefits.
Darryl Woodson, 65, worked for the federal government for nearly half a century. After the many cuts to the workforce last year, he decided to enroll in the Deferred Resignation Program (DRP), which paid him three months' salary before his retirement benefits were supposed to kick in. He says that hasn't happened yet and he's out of money.
Woodson's story starts in 1979 when he was 18 years old, and his mother, who had taught him how to sew, made him take the government job.
"I would sit at the sewing machine, and I would make clothes for the Marines, for the Coast Guard, for the Air Force," Woodson said.
He said he made $5.26 per hour but kept getting promotion after promotion. Eight agencies and 46 years later, Woodson last worked at the Department of Housing and Urban Development based in Philadelphia.
In 2025, when the Trump administration proposed big cuts to all federal agencies, Woodson said he consulted his HR staff, who estimated he would receive more than $9,000 per month in retirement. He decided it was time.
"I love my job. I miss my job, but I had to leave because if I didn't leave, there was a concern that my job may be abolished," Woodson said.
He said after getting his full salary as expected, he was eligible to receive his monthly retirement benefit starting in October 2025, but he went months without anything until he says his retirement application was approved. Then he started receiving about $1,000 per month this past March.
"The savings have been exhausted. I'm relying on my good friends. I went from six figures to basically $1,000 a month," Woodson said.
The Office of Personnel Management is the federal government's human resources agency and oversees the retirement payments for federal workers. Woodson said he's been trying to talk with someone at OPM for nine months but can't get anyone on the phone or via email. Now, he sends a letter every day.
OPM's website says it's experiencing a historic surge of retirements, all while its own department lost 25% of its employees to the same incentives. Woodson said he understands the backlog, but he needs answers.
According to the OPM website, most retirees should have their full retirement payments within 60 days, but high volume means it's taking longer. In the meantime, the agency issues "interim pay" usually within 30 days while they catch up on processing. Interim pay should be about 80% of one's full retirement benefit.
OPM says 38,547 people are still waiting for their full retirement benefits and a lot of the issues with the retirement system predate the current administration.
After CBS News Philadelphia reached out to OPM, a spokesperson confirmed they are working on getting Woodson all the money he's owed.
