DOD civilian job satisfaction plummets as survey reveals "layer cake" of workforce trauma

The Defense Department's civilian workforce is reporting a sharp decline in job satisfaction following a year of cuts, a hiring freeze, and persistent fears of further reductions in force, according to a survey released 19 March 2026 by the nonprofit, nonpartisan Partnership for Public Service.

The survey of approximately 11,000 federal workers found that Navy and Marine Corps civilians experienced the steepest drop, falling from 68.1 out of 100 in 2024 to 36.4 in 2025. Air Force scores fell from 67 to 38.5, Army from 70.3 to 48.1, and the defense secretary's office, Joint Staff, and other fourth-estate organizations from 63.6 to 40.6. Just 9.1 percent of Army employees agreed that Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth's political leadership team "generates high levels of motivation in the workforce"—the highest agreement rate among large agencies surveyed.

The Partnership conducted its Best Places to Work in Federal Government survey independently for the first time after OPM leaders announced they would not administer the legally required Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey, citing a need to revise questions in line with the administration's anti-diversity policies.

Some 14 percent of DOD's formerly 795,000-strong civilian workforce departed in 2025 through voluntary or involuntary means, with only about 30,000 hired in freeze-exempt positions. Partnership CEO Max Stier told Government Executive that the results reflect data from employees who remained after the bulk of cuts, not from those who left. Pentagon spokesman Jacob Bliss accused Defense One of "cherry-picking" the data and called the Partnership anti-Trump, but did not identify which results would provide fuller context.