The Trump administration broadened its effort to terminate thousands of probationary workers on Thursday, instructing agencies on a call to move forward with the layoffs.

The Trump administration is intensifying its sweeping efforts to shrink the size of the federal workforce by ordering agencies to lay off all probationary employees who had not yet gained civil service protection.

The Trump administration on Thursday moved swiftly to fire thousands of workers and directed agency heads to terminate most trial and probationary staff — a move that could affect as many as 200,000 employees,

Office of Personnel Management officials met with agency leaders and advised them to dismiss probationary employees, according to a person familiar with the matter. Hundreds of thousands of people could be affected,