The Department of Defense is launching a deferred resignation program and early retirement initiative to trim the size of the civilian workforce. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth stated in a memorandum signed Friday that the military is looking for ways to automate more positions as part of an across-the-board restructuring. The memo calls for senior DOD officials to provide a “future-state organizational chart” of their respective departments that details how they will be streamlined.
The new organization charts must be submitted to the Defense Department’s human resource office before April 11. The Pentagon said it sees opportunities “through technological solutions” to automate some positions, “particularly at the headquarters level.” The net effect will be reduced civilian full-time equivalent positions and increased resources in the areas where they are most needed. The reductions are necessary “to put the department on a ready footing to deter our enemies and fight for peace,” the DOD said.
Deferred resignation and streamlining initiative
The memo did not specify how much workforce it intends to cut. In January, the Pentagon offered deferred resignations through a program managed by the Office of Personnel Management, offering participants full pay and benefits through September.
As of March 18, a number of DOD’s 900,000 civilian workers had signed up, falling short of the Pentagon’s goal of 50,000-60,000 employees. Now, deferred resignations and early retirements are being offered under Defense Department authority “for nearly all DOD civilians” rather than under the auspices of OPM. “Exemptions should be rare,” Hegseth said.
“My intent is to maximize participation to minimize the number of involuntary actions required to achieve the strategic objectives.”
The memo stated that the culling of the civilian workforce is part of an effort to “strategically restructure it to supercharge our American warfighters. ” The initiative seeks to realign and strategically restructure the department’s civilian positions.
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