Senators press Pentagon on hiring freeze, civilian separations and limits on transgender service
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Summary
Members questioned Secretary Hegseth about DoD personnel policies: hiring freezes and OPM review of new hires, voluntary separation programs, and a new policy that will remove some transgender service members; senators warned of readiness and recruitment impacts and asked for analyses.
Senators used the hearing to press DoD officials about personnel actions that they said are affecting readiness and operations, including a hiring freeze, a voluntary right‑sizing program (DRP), and a policy change affecting transgender service members.
Key points
- Senator Murray and others said the administration’s personnel changes have pushed out experienced civilians across installations and shipyards, including at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Puget Sound area installations. She said staff have been required to have one‑by‑one OPM approvals and that some roles remain unfilled because of hiring processes.
- Secretary Hegseth said the department offered a voluntary reduction program and disputed that the department was “firing shipbuilders,” calling the changes a right‑sizing exercise and saying the budget invests historically in the shipbuilding industrial base.
- Senator Baldwin and others asked what analysis the department conducted before implementing a policy to separate some transgender service members from the military. Secretary Hegseth said the department had conducted “extensive analysis” and cited the White House executive order and the department’s view that mental‑health factors associated with gender dysphoria complicate military service; he said the department is committed to recruitment and retention and that recruiting levels are historically high.
- Senators demanded the underlying analysis and cost estimates on the readiness and recruiting impacts of those personnel changes; witnesses agreed to provide the requested material for the record.
Discussion vs. direction vs. decision
- Discussion: Senators debated whether the personnel actions were necessary, whether they undermined readiness, and whether hiring impediments harmed shipyards and installations.
- Direction: Witnesses agreed to provide the committee with analyses requested, including the department’s assessment of impacts on readiness and cost estimates to recruit and train replacements.
- Decisions: None recorded publicly during the hearing.
Quotes
Senator Murray: "Will you be firing more shipbuilders? Yes or no?"
Secretary Hegseth: "We haven't fired shipbuilders. We've offered through a right sizing of our civilian positions ... a voluntary process by which some people choose to take a DRP." He added, "There's never been a litmus test for hiring welders."
Clarifying details
- Senators said thousands of civilian employees had left or been encouraged to leave; the department described the personnel changes as voluntary right‑sizing in some offices.
- Senators asked for cost estimates for recruiting and training replacement personnel; witnesses committed to provide those figures and the underlying readiness analyses.
Provenance
- The personnel exchanges were raised throughout the hearing in questioning by Senator Murray, Senator Collins and Senator Baldwin and resulted in commitments to deliver the department’s relevant analyses to the committee.