Pentagon eyes civilian staff slash with 'speed, conviction'
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The Pentagon has issued a memo easing civilian firings just before a shutdown furloughed nearly half its workforce, raising concerns among defense employees.
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The Pentagon, the headquarters for the US Department of War, is seen from the air, Saturday, Sept. 20, 2025, in Arlington, Va (AP)
The Pentagon removed key protections for civilian defense workers and directed managers to fire employees with “unacceptable” performance reviews last month, just a day before the government shutdown.
The War Department circulated new guidelines in the past week, outlined in a Sept. 30 memo titled “Separation of Employees with Unacceptable Performance,” which has raised concerns among the workforce.
Some managers view the move as necessary to remove underperforming employees, while others warn that the edict, signed by Undersecretary of Defense Anthony Tata, the Pentagon’s top personnel policy officer, is so broad that it could be used to fire anyone who does not fully support the administration’s programs.
“Looks like we are all ‘at will’ employees now,” said one defense civilian, who, like others, spoke on the condition of anonymity because of fear of retaliation.
US government shutdown furloughs half of civilian War Department workers
Almost half of the defense civilian workforce is furloughed during the ongoing partial government shutdown. Earlier this month, the Trump administration attempted to fire thousands of furloughed employees, but a California federal court blocked the move, ruling that the cuts were likely illegal while the government was closed.
“The Department is in the process of adapting to the new guidance outlined in Under Secretary of War Tata’s memo from September 30th, and we have nothing specific to share at this time,” the Pentagon said in a statement to The Washington Post, emphasizing that no additional details are currently available.
The civilian firings are part of a broader effort by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who seeks to remove the “debris” he says is obstructing his mission to implement President Donald Trump’s agenda.
“The sooner we have the right people, the sooner we can advance the right policies. Personnel is policy,” Hegseth said last month during a speech to hundreds of generals at Marine Corps Base Quantico, stressing the connection between staffing and the implementation of his agenda.
New memo makes firing civilian workers easier
The memo broadly makes it easier for managers to fire government civilians working for the military, warning, at the same time, that managers will be held accountable if they fail to address “poor employee performance.”
One defense civilian stated that, based on their understanding of the guidelines, the new rules introduce more subjectivity into job performance evaluations.
The memo tells managers to cite the Douglas Factors, criteria used in federal evaluations, but each factor includes added language that could weaken some of those considerations. For example, under the Douglas Factor covering an employee’s roles and responsibilities, the Tata memo states that “every DoW position supports the mission, so deficiencies in any role can warrant strong action,” highlighting the potential for stricter enforcement.
Managers previously had to give employees detailed feedback and specific objectives to improve performance, but under the new policy, those improvement plans are not required, and targeted employees have only seven days to challenge their review.
Employment attorneys cautioned that this memo reduces the standard checks and balances within the department, making it much easier to fire employees who are in the way.
