Pentagon Aims to Cut 60,000 Civilian Jobs

The Pentagon is attempting to reduce its civilian workforce by 50,000 to 60,000 employees through voluntary workforce reductions. However, it remains uncertain whether the goal can be met without forced layoffs, Luis Martinez reported for ABC News.

Approximately 21,000 civilian employees have already had their voluntary resignation requests approved under the Deferred Resignation Program (DRP).

The Defense Department is implementing a voluntary process to achieve a 5% to 8% reduction of its 878,000 civilian employees—equivalent to 50,000 to 60,000 jobs—a senior defense official told reporters.

“The number sounds high, but I would focus on the percentage—a 5% to 8% reduction is not a drastic one,” said the official, adding that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth “is confident this can be done without negatively impacting readiness to ensure resources are properly allocated.”

The voluntary reduction process includes employees resigning through the "Fork in the Road" initiative, a hiring freeze on replacing departing employees, and the dismissal of 5,400 probationary employees

Approximately 21,000 civilian employees have already had their voluntary resignation requests approved under the Deferred Resignation Program (DRP), which allows employees to resign while continuing to receive pay through the end of the fiscal year on September 30.

ABC News previously reported that 31,000 civilian employees had offered to resign under the Trump administration initiative, though some requests were denied.