US Defense Department: 50,000 to 60,000 civilian jobs are being cut in the US Department of Defense (Pentagon). So far, about 21,000 employees have accepted the voluntary resignation scheme in this retrenchment process. Which is about one third of the total target cuts. A senior defense officer gave this information on Tuesday. The Defense Department aims to cut the civil workforce from 5% to 8% of its more than 900,000 employees. For this, about 6,000 posts will be terminated every month. Apart from this, posts of retired or jobs will not be filled regularly.
This deduction is being implemented under the leadership of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, which aims to reduce the budget of the department and reduce government spending. The scheme is known as the ‘Fork in the Road’ proposal and it gives employees the option to quit his job voluntarily by September.
The burden on military personnel may increase
Officials are concerned that military personnel can be posted on vacant citizen posts. This can affect their efficiency. However, Defense Minister Pete Hegseth has ordered that this cut should not adversely affect military preparations. The deduction is being done under the Government Efficiency Services Department (DOGE), a close advisor to the Trump administration and billionaire businessman Elon Musk, which aims to reduce the federal task force and restructure government agencies.
Voluntary resignation and other cuttings
The Defense Department is cutting the number of employees in three main ways.
voluntary resignation
Some employees voluntarily resigned under the Fork in the Road Scheme, but not all were allowed.
Dismissal of probationary employees
The department had planned to expel about 5,400 probationary employees but was challenged in court.
Ban on appointment of new employees
About 70,000 civilian personnel are recruited every year, but this process is getting limited.
The court stayed, ordered many employees to return
The courts have banned the layoffs of probationary employees and the administration has ordered the restoration of thousands of employees. The court saw flaws in the legal process of trimming.
Defense Department Chairman Hegseth says that this deduction will not affect the way the army works. Recently in Germany, he said that the headquarters has many unnecessary positions and administrative costs, which need to be abolished.
Large scale pruning in the federal government
Not only the Defense Department, but about 75,000 employees in the entire American federal system are being fired under the postponed resignation program. Apart from this, 24,000 probationary employees were removed in the initial stages, but also faced legal challenges.
Meanwhile, Democratic MPs in the US Congress have expressed concern over large -scale sorting in the central bureaucracy. The judiciary of the House and the inspection committees of the House have sought information from the administration on the legal aspects of this deduction from the administration under the Independence of Information Act (FOIA).
President Donald Trump has ordered the implementation of a large scale ‘force’ (RIF) scheme to reduce the size of the government and cut jobs. However, there is no clear information about its effects in the Pentagon.
US Defense Secretary Hegseth removed top military officers
A few days ago, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said, “I have removed senior officials from military service because I believe they are not suitable for this job.” Hegseth refused to answer the question before the meeting with the Defense Minister of Saudi Arabia. In which he was asked why President Donald Trump’s administration selected a retired general as the next Joint Chief of Staff Chairman, while he does not fulfill the legal qualifications for the post. President Donald Trump on Friday suddenly president, Air Force General C.Q. Brown Junior was removed from the post, and then Hegseth removed Navy Operations Head, Navy Admiral Lisa Frenchti and Air Force Vice President, Air Force General James Slif from the post.
