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The Pentagon has announced a new round of voluntary resignations and early retirements for its civilian workforce.
Some shit you should know before you read: If you didn’t know, President Trump has made slashing the federal workforce a central pillar of his second-term agenda, arguing the government is bloated with unnecessary bureaucracy that stifles efficiency, innovation, and responsiveness. He claims too many agencies are overstaffed with administrators and middle managers who create red tape instead of results, diverting resources from frontline services and national priorities. To start implementing this vision, the Pentagon—one of the largest federal employers—began trimming its civilian workforce earlier this year. That initial phase included targeted layoffs of probationary employees and a hiring freeze, which has already been shrinking staffing levels through attrition by thousands each month.
What’s going on now: In an announcement, the Pentagon confirmed that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth signed a new directive launching the Workforce Acceleration and Recapitalization Initiative, a sweeping effort to reduce the Defense Department’s civilian workforce by 5 to 8%, or approximately 50,000 to 60,000 positions. To achieve this, the Pentagon is reopening its Deferred Resignation Program and reauthorizing the Voluntary Early Retirement Authority (VERA), offering eligible civilian employees a chance to voluntarily separate from the department. Officials say the goal is to maximize voluntary participation in order to avoid more disruptive involuntary actions like layoffs, although those remain on the table if necessary.
This new wave of offers follows an earlier round in which around 21,000 employees accepted a similar buyout. However, with tens of thousands of additional reductions still needed to meet the overall target, this latest initiative represents a significantly larger push. The Pentagon has not specified how many people will receive offers in this round, but Hegseth has made clear that exemptions should be rare, even for those in traditionally protected roles, such as national security.
To support the rollout, Hegseth has ordered the heads of all military departments and defense agencies to submit a proposed organizational restructure by April 11. This “future-state” chart must clearly lay out consolidated management layers, position titles, and personnel counts, serving as a blueprint for how the workforce will be reshaped.
