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US Department of Defense, Matthew Olya, DOD News, March 18, 2025
A senior defense official told the media today that approximately 21,000 Defense Department civilian employees volunteered to participate in the Deferred Resignation Program.
The DRP, implemented by the Office of Personnel Management Jan. 28, 2025, offered most full-time federal employees — including most of the nearly 900,000 DOD civilians — the opportunity to resign with full pay and benefits until Sept. 30, 2025.
As part of DOD's effort to align its civilian workforce with national security priorities, the department has been actively processing DRP applications while working to achieve a strategic reduction in manpower of 5-8%, or approximately 50,000-60,000 employees.