One result of the legislation passed by Congress to delay automatic spending cuts for two months is a reprieve on furloughs for federal workers. The spending cuts would have forced agencies to cut their budgets by 8-10%. The Department of Defense had been preparing to furlough its entire civilian workforce, about 800,000 people. If the cuts take place in two months, the Defense Department said that it could be even harder to implement cuts. Federal agencies are required to give employees 30 days notice for furloughs less than 22 days, and 60 days notice for anything longer. The legislation does not impact a planned pay increase for federal workers, the first in almost two years.
See "Federal workers breathe sigh of relief", Jennifer Liberto, CNN Money, January 1, 2013