The Agriculture Department is counting on a “significant number” of employees not to relocate to keep their jobs, according to internal documents, deepening staffing cuts across its operations.

USDA is asking thousands of its employees to relocate across the country as part of sweeping reorganization plans it began unveiling last year.

Employees recently began receiving relocation notices and must decide this summer whether they will accept relocation or leave their jobs. Staff who opt to relocate generally must report to their new offices by September or October.

Federal employee unions and nonprofit organizations, as part of an ongoing lawsuit, are asking a federal judge in San Francisco to temporarily bar USDA from carrying out its reorganization plans.