Washington, D.C. – The process for federal employee retirement, long mired in paper-based bureaucracy and months-long waits, is undergoing a significant digital transformation, promising to reduce processing times from months to mere days. Airbnb co-founder Joe Gebbia, a member of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), announced the impending changes, stating on X, "Retirement for federal employees will never be the same. More to announce soon." This initiative aims to modernize a system that has remained largely unchanged since the 1970s.
Historically, the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) processed federal retirement paperwork by hand, with records stored in a limestone mine in Boyers, Pennsylvania. This antiquated method led to processing times of three to five months for an individual worker to receive their first annuity payment, causing frustration for thousands of retiring public servants annually. Gebbia described the previous system as an "injustice" to civil servants.
Gebbia, who joined DOGE to apply his design expertise to government efficiency, has championed an "Apple Store-like experience" for federal employees seeking retirement. Under his guidance, and in collaboration with OPM career staffers, the agency successfully processed its first fully digital retirement application in late February, completing it in less than a week. By early May, 25 federal employees had retired through this new online process.
The modernization effort marks a critical shift for OPM, which has attempted and failed to automate the retirement process in the past. The new system is designed to be user-friendly, bridging outdated computer systems across various federal agencies. According to a memo from acting OPM Director Charles Ezell, most federal employees will be required to use the new digital system immediately, with paper forms phased out for others by July 15.
This digital overhaul is expected to significantly improve the efficiency and experience for approximately 100,000 federal employees who retire each year. The initiative underscores a broader push within the government to leverage modern technology and design principles to streamline long-standing, cumbersome administrative procedures. The move is poised to eliminate the extensive delays that have plagued federal retirees for decades.