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The Pentagon To Lay Off 5,400 Civilian Workers – More Job Cuts May Follow
A 5 to 8% reduction of the Pentagon’s civilian workforce is to be undertaken, commencing with a layoff notice next week for 5,400 probationary employees, affirmed by the Department of Defense (DoD) representative.
Reasons for These Layoffs
The firings came as one part of a much bigger scheme to save money and align military priorities with those of former President Donald Trump. Darin Selnick, the acting Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness, explained that the purpose of such layoffs is to eliminate unnecessary jobs and devote available funds toward military readiness.
Freeze on Hires and Future Layoffs
Along with the layoffs, the Department of Defense has announced a freeze on hiring to evaluate staffing needs at military bases. While initial layoffs will be conducted on some 5,400 employees, overall layoffs could, at best, add up to between 35,000 and 60,000 personnel in the months ahead. Currently, the DoD has more than 700,000 full-time civilian employees, making it the largest government agency.
Who’s Affected?
The first to be hit are probationary employees-less than a year working with the department and thus not yet benefiting from the fat civil service-granted buffers. According to government projections almost half of U.S. troops reside within states that supported Donald Trump in the upcoming 2024 presidential elections.
The government plans more budgetary reductions which will occur during the approaching days and weeks. The tens of thousands of civilian jobs at risk create serious concerns about how well the Pentagon can maintain its mission and personnel levels.
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