The U.S. government's human resources agency is rushing to shut down and drastically shrink entire departments in what sources say will serve as a template for a second wave of mass layoffs in the federal bureaucracy.

A Wednesday memo from the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) and Office of Management and Budget (OMB) directs agencies across government to turn over plans for widespread layoffs of

Two sources speaking on condition of anonymity said the OPM is preparing for a second wave of mass federal layoffs.