Denver city leaders will alert an untold number of employees Monday and Tuesday that they have lost their jobs — notifications that will mark a painful moment for city workers, residents and officials as the first mass layoffs in local government since 2011.

“This has been the hardest leadership task I’ve probably ever had to undertake,” Mayor Mike Johnston said during a televised meeting with City Council members last week.

The layoffs come as part of the response to the city’s budget crunch. The cuts will help close a $200 million budget gap projected for 2026 , one that formed because of a slump in sales tax revenue and growth in city expenses, Johnston announced in May.

The city’s reserve fund is also running critically low after Johnston’s administration chose to let it creep b

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