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Washington, USA – US Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth has confirmed the start of massive civilian layoffs at the Pentagon as part of a large-scale plan to reduce government staff initiated by the Donald Trump administration. This was reported by Defence One.
Mass layoffs to start on 21 February
According to sources, as early as 21 February, the US Department of Defence will begin mass layoffs among civilian employees, especially those on probation. Recruitment of new employees will be temporarily suspended.
“The Pentagon is reassessing the number of probationary personnel it needs,”said Defence Secretary Pete Hagel in a video message.
DOGE’s influence on Pentagon decisions
The Department of Government Effectiveness (DOGE), chaired by Elon Musk, is playing a key role in these changes. Last Friday, DOGE representatives visited the Pentagon for the first time, after which a Defence Ministry policy official sent a warning letter to employees about upcoming layoffs.
According to Military.com, the DOGE team has already gained access to the Pentagon’s information systems and databases to scrutinise the ministry’s budgetary expenditures. Pete Hegseth has ordered the military services to identify $50 billion worth of programmes that can be cut without compromising defence capability.
Budget cuts for the largest federal institution
The Pentagon is the largest federal agency in the United States with a budget of about $850 billion. It also holds a significant amount of classified information relating to national security.
The Trump administration aims to reduce government spending and believes that even the largest government agencies can function more efficiently with fewer staff.
Potential implications for US defence capabilities
Analysts have expressed concern about the possible negative impact of such large-scale cuts on the Pentagon’s performance. The dismissal of a large number of civilian employees could lead to delays in the implementation of a number of critical programmes and create management gaps.
However, administration officials claim that none of the key US defence programmes will be affected, and that the cuts will help “optimise costs” and “reduce bureaucracy”.
