US financial regulator OCC joins other agencies in firing staff

By Pete Schroeder and Patrick Wingrove

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. regulator charged with monitoring large national banks told staff on Friday it was firing 76 probationary employees, making it the latest agency to join the Trump administration’s push to cut federal workers.

Staff at the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency were notified that those employees would leave the watchdog on March 8, according to an email seen by Reuters. An OCC spokesperson declined to comment. The firings were first reported by Bloomberg Law.

In 2024, the OCC reported 3,630 full-time employees, according to its website.

The removals mark the latest in a series of firings across the federal government of probationary employees, who are workers who have been in their roles typically for one or two years, and enjoy fewer protections than longer-term employees.

On Monday, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation informed over 100 probationary employees they were losing their jobs, and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau fired dozens of similar workers earlier this month as part of a sweeping effort to drastically reduce its workforce.

(Reporting by Pete Schroeder and Patrick Wingrove; Editing by Sandra Maler)