The IRS Hired 19,000 People in 2024 and Forgot to Give Them Laptops

The IRS Hired 19,000 People in 2024 and Forgot to Give Them Laptops

You know that sinking feeling when you show up to a new job and your desk isn't ready, your email doesn't work, and IT says "we'll get to you next week"?

Now imagine that happening to 7,500 IRS employees in a single year.

A new report from the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) just dropped, and it's a masterclass in how not to onboard people during the busiest tax season on record.

What TIGTA Found

In fiscal year 2024, the IRS onboarded nearly 19,000 new hires — part of the Inflation Reduction Act hiring surge meant to improve taxpayer service. The agency redesigned its onboarding process, created a five-day orientation program, and built out resources for managers.

But when TIGTA audited the results, here's what actually happened:

40% of new employees didn't get their laptop within five workdays of starting. That's roughly 7,505 people sitting at a desk with no computer, unable to access systems, complete training, or do their actual job. For context, a tax examining technician's main duty is reviewing taxpayer returns. Can't do that without a laptop.

There's no formal guidance on when new hires should receive equipment, but the orientation playbook says day three. TIGTA used five workdays as the benchmark because that's the typical orientation period. Either way, 40% missed the window.

44% of new hires didn't receive their performance expectations within 30 days. That's 8,253 employees who had no idea how they'd be evaluated or what their job actually required. The problem? Managers' onboarding checklists don't include a step to issue the critical job elements (CJE) form within 30 days.

Some new hires work in temporary areas or get assigned to different managers while waiting for training. Their permanent manager might not be determined until after training ends, which makes it nearly impossible to track whether the CJE conversation even happened.

65% of managers didn't complete quarterly touchpoint meetings. TIGTA sampled FY 2023 hires and found that 13 out of 20 employees never participated in the required quarterly check-ins during their first year. The remaining seven participated, but not all meetings happened on time.

IRS management confirmed the meetings are required, but admitted that not all managers are completing them. There's no formal policy — just informal guidelines and a March 2024 training slide deck.

Why This Matters to CPAs

If nearly half of new IRS employees don't have the tools or clarity they need to do their jobs, you and your clients feel it.

Delayed refunds? Check. Longer phone hold times? Check. Increased errors in correspondence? Check.

The National Taxpayer Advocate already reported that between January 2025 and December 2025, the IRS workforce dropped from 102,000 to 74,000 — a 27% reduction. That's 28,000 fewer people answering phones, processing returns, and handling correspondence.

Now layer in the hiring freeze under President Trump's January 2025 executive order, and you've got a workforce that's shrinking, under-equipped, and under-trained.

What the IRS Is Doing About It

TIGTA made five recommendations, including:

• Establish a formal timeline for when managers must request laptops

• Alert managers when performance plans are past due

• Require managers to hold quarterly touchpoint meetings

IRS management agreed with four recommendations and partially agreed with one, saying they'll require managers to conduct a minimum of three touchpoints per annual appraisal period. TIGTA said that meets the intent of the recommendation.

The Bottom Line

The IRS spent hundreds of millions of dollars from the Inflation Reduction Act to improve hiring and onboarding. They redesigned the process, built new tools, and onboarded 19,000 people in a year.

But 40% of new hires still didn't get a laptop on time, and 44% didn't know how they'd be evaluated.

If you're wondering why your client's refund is delayed or why you've been on hold for 90 minutes, this is part of the answer.