Small Business Administration to reorganize, cut about 2,700 jobs
By Mae Anderson
FILE - Administrator of the Small Business Administration Kelly Loeffler, right, speaks at a rally before Vice President JD Vance speaks about "America's industrial resurgence," Friday, March 14, 2025, at Vantage Plastics in Bay City, Mich. At left is Vantage Plastics President Paul Aultman. (AP Photo/Jose Juarez, File)
NEW YORK (AP) — The Small Business Administration said it will cut its workforce by 43%, or about 2,700 jobs, as part of a reorganization.
The SBA was established in 1953 to offer resources to small businesses and helps administer small business and disaster recovery loans. It played a crucial role during the pandemic, helping distribute small business aid. Now the goal is to return to pre-pandemic staffing levels and cut some programs started during the Biden administration, said the new head of the SBA, Kelly Loeffler.
“By eliminating non-mission-critical positions and consolidating functions, we will revert to the staffing levels of the last Trump Administration,” Loeffler said Friday in a statement.
The SBA said its loan guarantee and disaster assistance programs, as well as its field and veteran operations, won't be affected. The staffing reductions, which will cull 2,700 jobs from the agency's workforce of 6,500, will be a combination of voluntary resignations, the expiration of COVID-era and other term appointments, and some job cuts.
The layoffs at the federal agency are part of a larger campaign by the Trump Administration to shrink the federal workforce, an effort has been led by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency.
Separately on Friday, Trump announced student loans would be handled by the SBA as part of a plan to shift Education Department responsibilities to other federal agencies. The SBA did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Nestlé has dismissed its CEO Laurent Freixe after an investigation into an undisclosed relationship with a direct subordinate. The company announced on Monday that the dismissal was effective immediately. An investigation found that Freixe violated Nestlé’s code of conduct. He had been CEO for a year. Philipp Navratil, a longtime Nestlé executive, will replace him. Chairman Paul Bulcke stated that the decision was necessary to uphold the company’s values and governance. Navratil began his career with Nestlé in 2001 and has held various roles, including CEO of Nestlé's Nespresso division since 2024.
Kraft Heinz is splitting into two companies a decade after they joined in a massive merger that created one of the biggest food companies on the planet. One of the companies will include brands such as Heinz, Philadelphia cream cheese and Kraft Mac & Cheese. The other will include brands like Oscar Mayer, Kraft Singles and Lunchables. When the company formed in 2015 it wanted to capitalize on its massive scale, but shifting tastes complicated those plans, with households seeking to introduce healthier options at the table. Kraft Heinz's net revenue has fallen every year since 2020.
About 780,000 pressure washers sold at retailers like Home Depot are being recalled across the U.S. and Canada, due to a projectile hazard that has resulted in fractures and other injuries among some consumers.
