The US government agency that provides benefits to tens of millions of older Americans on Friday announced plans to cut 7,000 workers as part of the Trump administration’s plan to slash the size of the federal workforce.

In a statement, the Social Security Administration, SSA, which sends checks to 73 million retired and disabled Americans each month, said it was going to reduce its workforce by more than 12 percent.

“The agency plans to reduce the size of its bloated workforce and organizational structure, with a significant focus on functions and employees who do not directly provide mission critical services.

“Social Security recently set a staffing target of 50,000, down from the current level of approximately 57,000 employees,” the SSA said.

According to the agency, it will close down many of its regional offices, from 10 to 4.

The agency is seen as a crucial provider of benefits to elderly Americans and their pensions, and one of few government departments traditionally seen as off limits for cuts by US politicians.

Recall that US President Donald Trump repeatedly pledged when he campaigned for re-election to the White House that he would not touch Social Security when it came to his plans to cut government spending.

The White House and the Department of Government Efficiency, DOGE, has not yet commented on the development.

In a memo written by Leland Dudek, the agency’s acting commissioner, two dozen senior staff members at SSA on Friday resigned from the agency.

Dudek took over SSA after Michelle King, the previous acting commissioner, stepped down over her concerns about members of billionaire Elon Musk’s DOGE getting access to SSA’s computer systems, which contain the personal data of tens of millions of Americans.

The Trump administration and DOGE have downsized more than 100,000 of the federal government’s 2.3 million civilian workers through a combination of layoffs and buyouts.

Trump and Musk said that the government was bloated and wasteful.

US Social Security Administration to cut 7,000 workers