@KK954 @Eiregoat @zero They get a "reduction in force" letter and they either don't hire them back or they wait so long to hire them back that it's better to just find work elsewhere. They get to keep their medical for 18 months through COBRA and they get paid the vacation time they accrued, and reinstatement rights, but that's about it.
They can probably reinstate to a lower pay grade.
After Bush I, the Civil Service filled the government with high paid middle managers and very few people to do the actual work.