The promotions, taken together with job cuts, display a “failure of leadership and planning,” the union said. Image: Westy72/iStock
By: FEDweek StaffThe American Foreign Service Association has rebuked the State Department for the “stunning contradiction” of laying off employees included in the department’s 2025 promotion cycle, saying it sends the message that “in today’s State Department, even excellence cannot protect your career.”
The annual promotion lists recognize Foreign Service employees for “outstanding performance” and readiness for leadership roles, but the AFSA estimates that at least 10 of its members were among the 264 Foreign Service employees laid off July 11, part of the department’s largest single day reduction-in-force. (An AFSA spokesperson clarified that the employees were all considered and recommended for promotion by the boards that started this year in mid-June – so under current leadership.)
“That the department would simultaneously recognize individuals for exemplary service and eliminate their positions as no longer needed defies logic,” AFSA said in its statement. The association added that the move undercuts the Department’s repeated claims that the July layoffs were performance-based.
The promotions, taken together with job cuts, display a “failure of leadership and planning,” the union said.
On July 11, Secretary of State Marco Rubio moved forward with a reorganization after the Supreme Court lifted an injunction on mass RIFs government-wide, eliminating 1,353 positions, including 1,107 civil service staff and 246 Foreign Service officers.
Ten bureaus or offices were dismantled outright, including the Bureau of Conflict & Stabilization Operations, and cuts to Consular Affairs are expected to delay passports and visas by more than 90 days. Officials said the move was aimed at consolidating functions—such as merging the Russian and Caucasus desks—and refocusing on cybersecurity and sanctions oversight.
An AFSA spokesperson questioned whether the administration would follow through with promotions at the lower and mid levels, up to 01, and doubted whether the Senate would complete a required approval process for Senior Foreign Service that were RIF’d, before they are forced to retire in November.
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