FEDERAL HIRING HALTED: VA RELEASES MEMO PAUSING ALL CIVILIAN JOB OPENINGS
On March 1, 2025, the release of the new memorandum by the Department of the Air Force with regard to the non-military hiring freeze was issued in pursuit of the secretary of defense memorandum in relation to aligning safety and prioritization to the national defense priorities.
The action was to outline the federal hiring freeze of the executive order to the DAF organization to pause hiring civilians and to keep the position vacant in the Department of Air Force.
With this action, civilians may find alternative jobs following the hiring freeze executive order.
What to Know About the New Memorandum
The immediate civilian hiring freeze was emphasized in the new memorandum, stating that the action was done in relation to following the alignment in the national defense priorities done on February 28, 2025.
In pursuant to the secretary of defense memorandum, the new memorandum stating the federal hiring freeze is directed to be effective immediately. The immediate directory was to give orders in the Department of the Air Force organization along with the Major Commands, Air Combat Command, Field Commands, Field Operating Agencies, and Direct Reporting Units to pause the hiring of civilians.
With the directive of the memorandum, military departments mentioned that they must be able to freeze hiring, cancel job offers, reform the hiring process, and pause filling the job vacancies in the Department of the Air Force. The aforementioned policy was to give way to prioritize the nation’s national defense.
The new memorandum gives a directive order to the federal government, such as the DAF, to freeze hiring to emphasize their regulation given the budget cut that happened in the DAF.
Federal Hiring Freeze Issuance
Trump's motive to freeze the hiring of civil citizens proved to be his decision. A decision to make the United States of America great and align to a more secure and safe nation. He believes that it can save more money by cutting some slacks for citizens who are looking for a job.
"I imposed an immediate freeze on all federal hiring, a freeze on all new federal regulations," said Trump in the joint session of Congress on Tuesday.
In addition, his motive was to make efficiency and prioritization in the military industry. With the optimization of the strategic allocation of resources, the strategies will still work to their maximum efficiency.
Since the DAF has been overcrowded with military professionals, it is the way why inefficiency occurs on the basis of combat. That is why Trump's strategy was to freeze hiring and focus on the quality of the Soldiers rather than hiring more Soldiers that require long training.
Implications for Civilians
Following the memorandum regarding the federal hiring freeze, the primary affected individuals are those citizens seeking jobs in the Department of the Air Force. Along with this are other departments that were also affected by the memorandum, such as headquarters, MAJCOMs, FLDCOMs, FOAs, and DRUs.
Civilians seeking jobs specializing in the military may have delays on their work journeys as the memorandum does not require the date of the lift of the federal hiring freeze. Unemployment rates in the U.S. may rise due to many citizens' interest in military jobs.
Challenges to the citizens affected included their inability to find new jobs, which resulted in limited opportunities. Having said that, many citizens may struggle financially as their careers are temporarily blocked from being hired, which can have a huge impact on their daily lives.
Alternative Jobs for the Affected Civilians
One of the very evident jobs relating to the Department of the Air Force and its different branches is working in a private company supporting military operations. Although its extent is not the same as the practices in the public military, it will serve as a good option for job seekers.
Given that there is no guarantee of when the new memorandum of the federal hiring freeze will be, options to consider jobs in relation to the military are very rampant in the U.S., but the problem is its limitations in the field of professionalism and work growth.
Nonetheless, there are many job opportunities that citizens may still apply for, such as security consultant, emergency management, and private agencies in relation to the military. Although this may not be your priority, these are the jobs that you may consider.
Citizens may be forced to try different paths or job offers that will result in opposition to their field of expertise and might affect their professional development skills in the military field.
Read next:
- VA Health Care Jobs Are Exempt from Trump’s Hiring Freeze
- Here's How Federal Cuts Will Impact VA Research & the Job Market
- Veterans, National Security & More Could Be Hurt by Federal Job Cuts
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