The U.S. Department of Defense announced on Friday significant reductions to its workforce, initiating a layoff of 5,400 probationary employees and implementing a freeze on new hiring, effective next week.
This decision follows recent reviews conducted by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) at the Pentagon, where officials received lists of affected personnel. Importantly, uniformed military members are not impacted by these layoffs, as they are exempt from these changes. Probationary employees, who typically have been employed for less than a year, usually do not have the full protections offered to civil service workers.
According to Darin Selnick, the acting undersecretary of defense for personnel and readiness, this reduction aims to decrease the civilian workforce by about 5-8%. This strategy is intended to create efficiencies and better align the Department with the President’s priorities, particularly in enhancing military readiness.
The current administration has adopted a broader approach to workforce reductions within the federal government, notably targeting employees who possess limited civil service protections. For instance, the U.S. Forest Service has shed about 2,000 positions, with another 7,000 anticipated layoffs at the Internal Revenue Service.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has expressed his support for these cuts, taking to social media platform X last week to advocate for restructuring at the Pentagon, emphasizing a need to “cut the fat” while ensuring resources are directed toward combat readiness.
As the largest government agency, the Defense Department’s civilian workforce exceeds 700,000 full-time positions, based on findings from the Government Accountability Office in 2023.
Hegseth has also instructed military branches to identify approximately $50 billion in potential program reductions in the upcoming year. This funding is expected to be redirected toward initiatives that align with the President’s objectives, constituting nearly 8% of the military’s overall budget.
