The Defense Department has decided to temporarily halt a plan to conduct mass firings of civilian probationary employees pending a more comprehensive review of the potential impacts on US military readiness. This decision was made by Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and the Pentagon’s Office of General Counsel, as reported by two defense officials familiar with the matter.
The pause in the mass terminations, which could affect more than 50,000 civilian employees within the Pentagon, was prompted by concerns that the firings may violate Title 10 section 129a of the US code. This particular law stipulates that the secretary of defense must conduct a thorough analysis before reducing the civilian workforce programmed full-time equivalent levels, ensuring that any terminations do not compromise the lethality and readiness of the US military. The law also emphasizes that safeguarding military readiness should take precedence over cost considerations.
According to a senior defense official, it was revealed that the planned terminations had not undergone the necessary analysis before military leaders were instructed to compile lists of employees to be terminated. This lack of prior assessment prompted Pentagon lawyers to scrutinize the legality of the proposed firings more closely, leading to the current temporary suspension of the plan.
