UJ
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The rapid and extensive reductions in the federal workforce initiated by the Trump administration threaten the job stability of thousands of military families.
The recent upheaval within the military community, resulting from the dismissal of probationary employees, impending layoffs, and a series of deadlines for federal employees to resume work, is not unexpected.
For many years, the federal government has positioned itself as an ideal employer for military spouses, who face unemployment rates five times higher than the national average, despite often being more educated than their civilian counterparts.
Both Democratic and Republican administrations have supported their employment, including President Donald Trump, who in 2018 signed Executive Order 13832, urging federal agencies to recruit military spouses, thereby leveraging “a pool of talented individuals” to enhance the national interests of the United States and the welfare of military families.
Lawmakers, including Trump, have long recognized that employing military spouses is crucial for the financial stability of military families—25% of whom have faced food insecurity recently—and its implications for national security.
Trump’s executive order asserted that his federal hiring policy for military spouses would “help retain members of the Armed Forces, enhance military readiness, and acknowledge the remarkable sacrifices and contributions of our Armed Forces members and their families…”
Military families took his promises seriously, just as they have with every president advocating for increased federal employment opportunities for military spouses.
“Every spouse orientation at a new duty station emphasized: ‘You can volunteer! Or you can find a job in the government.’ They always convey that the government wants to employ military spouses,” shared a military spouse from Louisiana.
Military spouses face involuntary relocations every two to three years on average. Consequently, it’s common for federal government employees to frequently transition to new positions or even shift between departments within their agencies.
Many find themselves in the status of perpetual probationary employees — the very group the Trump administration targeted in its initial wave of layoffs.
They may remain probationary employees even after years of service with the federal government.
Arielle Pines, who dedicated 15 years to the Department of Veterans Affairs, received her termination notice via email last week, despite a history of outstanding performance evaluations.
“It’s not merely newcomers to the federal sector facing this issue,” she clarifies, countering the prevalent assumption regarding the layoffs of probationary employees.
“In my office, five of us transitioned from various human resources divisions. We are military spouses, veterans, one with 18 years of service.”
Residing in New Mexico where her husband serves as a senior enlisted airman specializing in aircraft maintenance, Arielle follows in her father’s footsteps from his Air Force days.
In November, she switched roles within the human resources division at the VA.
While technically it was a lateral move, it came with a more demanding workload and an increased salary, but also necessitated a standard probationary period.
She did not think anything of it; in her 15 years in federal service, she has undergone five probationary periods as she transitioned from nursing to emergency room technician to medical support assistant, and then to administrative roles.
Arielle, with a father who is a disabled veteran, is deeply committed to the mission of the VA. Her volunteering at the VA hospital in Spokane, Washington, began at age 11, where she distributed snacks to veterans and assisted them in locating their appointment venues.
“Watching my father endure pain daily as a maintenance worker in the Air Force left a lasting impression,” she recalls.
“He suffers from chronic back pain and nerve damage. This early exposure taught me to give back to those who have sacrificed so much for us. It has always been my aspiration.”
And now that sense of purpose has been stripped away.
Arielle is currently seeking to appeal her termination through the Merit Systems Protection Board, but Trump’s attempts to remove the agency’s administrator raise concerns about whether this independent body tasked with safeguarding federal employees from wrongful dismissals can effectively handle cases like hers.
She is among nearly 50 military spouses, either employed by or recently let go from the federal government, with whom I have been speaking over the past month.
These individuals are dispersed around the nation and abroad, accompanying their service members.
Almost all have expressed weeks of uncertainty and stress of a magnitude they have never previously encountered.
These spouses have supported their military partners and children through numerous relocations and dangerous deployments, including the Tower 22 drone strike in Jordan that resulted in three service members’ deaths last year, as well as the chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021, which saw an ISIS-K bomber kill 13.
These are individuals, mostly women (90% of military spouses), unified in matrimony with soldiers, sailors, airmen, and Marines—both enlisted and officers—who have dedicated their lives to military service while the armed forces struggles to retain personnel whose training and expertise are incredibly expensive for American taxpayers. Some military spouses are veterans themselves.
Rachael, a military spouse whose surname we are withholding for her family’s privacy, reported that her termination notice cited performance issues.
“My performance reviews have been excellent, so that assessment is completely inaccurate.”
She is currently on administrative leave from the CDC until mid-March after being dismissed on Saturday.
“The termination notice lacked any clarity regarding benefits.”
Rachael, to an active duty army pilot, recently became parents, purchased their first house, and heavily relies on her income to cover the mortgage payments.
Yet financial matters are not her foremost concern when reflecting on the turmoil of losing her job; rather, it’s her fulfillment in helping those in need and working within her field of expertise—a rarity for military spouses.
There are few available jobs for Ph.D.-level specialists in data analytics who must frequently relocate.
However, the CDC’s World Trade Center Health Program had an opportunity for her. Rachael was part of the team researching and aiding individuals whose health was impacted by inhalation of toxic air from the remnants of Ground Zero following the 9/11 attacks—serving first responders, workers, and residents of lower Manhattan.
Her department was also gearing up to investigate a new cohort of individuals who unfortunately inhaled the hazardous, carcinogenic smog from the debris after the towers collapsed: children.
“Our aim was to ensure these individuals received their required monitoring exams to assess lung function and identify any 9/11-related illnesses like asthma and lung cancer, for which they may not yet have received certifications,” Rachael elaborates.
Rachael had dedicated a year and a half to the program, mere months away from exiting her probationary period.
“I anticipated a systematic approach to the layoffs: assessing needs and redundancies. What actually happened was a blanket termination of probationary employees due to their limited rights, disregarding their roles and contributions.”
Following Trump’s January 20 directive for the federal workforce to resume in-person duties, many agencies informed military spouses that they were not exempt from this rule if they resided within 50 miles of a federal facility, even those designated as remote workers specifically for military spouses.
Military families were forced to scramble to accommodate commuting schedules, arrange childcare, and make arrangements to take unpaid leave or fly in family members to assist with impending deployments that would leave them as single parents.
Since then, the Office of Personnel Management, the federal government’s human resources agency, has issued numerous memos attempting to clarify how agencies should accommodate military spouse federal workers amid the call for in-person attendance.
The latest memo, dated February 12, explicitly stated, “This guidance clarifies that spouses of active-duty members of the U.S. Armed Forces working remotely are categorically exempt,” and “Consequently, military spouses are not considered eligible employees under return-to-office mandates.”
As a result, certain agencies began exempting military spouses who qualified as remote workers from mandatory in-person attendance.
However, in puzzling turns of events for numerous affected military families, some agencies did not comply.
“Based on my understanding of the policy, military spouses with telework agreements should also be exempt, but that isn’t being respected either,” remarked a military spouse working in human resources regarding her department.
Spouses of disabled service members, also distinctly recognized for an exemption in the memo, are being called back to the office, according to her.
The process of securing these exemptions has become burdensome. Military spouses are now required to advocate for themselves on an individual basis with supervisors who may lack familiarity with government regulations designed to protect military families and the rationale behind multiple administrations’ and Congress’s support for them.
“By creating a scenario where military spouses must request exemption, you are shifting the burden onto them,” asserts Maria Donnelly, a military family advocate and active duty spouse who previously worked as a federal employee.
“Often, they feel too apprehensive or unwilling to risk angering someone or jeopardizing their jobs.”
The pervasive uncertainty and stress within the federal workforce is also pushing military spouses out, as they anticipate potential job losses.
“The signs are obvious. It’s only a matter of time. I’m concerned that the longer I wait, regardless of my current security, the more saturated the job market will become,” shared one Marine Corps spouse with me.
“This is… utterly heartbreaking,” she admits, beginning to tear up on the call.
Although she has navigated the latest round of layoffs at her agency, she fears she could be next, given her status as one of the most junior staff members.
Her discussions about her job—her dream job—are now framed in the past tense.
She anticipates her salary will likely be halved, but hopes to secure a position that will finally offer the job stability that has been elusive since the onset of federal employment cuts.
Yet, her large family stands to face significant financial challenges.
“This situation makes [my husband] reconsider his military career, to be frank,” she reveals.
“We’ll end up living paycheck to paycheck once more.”
For many military spouses who are proud of their contributions to the service of their partners yet are eager to carve out their own identities, the conclusion is stark and devastating:
“A career seems unattainable for me,” the Marine spouse reflects, taking a moment to ponder what this reality means for her family. “Indeed, a career appears impossible.”
