‘What a mess for me and many others’: DOD’s murky hiring freeze has civilians in limbo

A month into a Defense Department hiring freeze meant to shrink the civilian workforce, some employees who had been preparing to move into new positions are still living out of hotel rooms, with their personal belongings long since shipped overseas.While Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has, on paper, allowed exemptions for some jobs, a lack of clarity on the process and a requirement that every approval go through his office has left people waiting weeks for answers.In at least one case, his offi