Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski complained as many as 100 Alaska federal workers have been let go by the Trump Administration’s cost-cutting measures from the Department of Government Efficiency.
But she wasn’t specific and apparently did not know the number, but she did know some of the terminations “would do more harm than good.”
Sen. Dan Sullivan was more careful in his response to the reduction in the federal workforce, saying that the actual number is not yet known and he is looking into it.
“Regarding the reported federal position cuts in Alaska: Job losses are always difficult on families and communities, especially in a tight-knit state like ours. I am working diligently to gather more information on what federal positions in Alaska have been cut and how they impact local communities,” Sullivan wrote. “Many of us remember how communities were struggling when thousands of jobs in our resource sector were lost in Alaska and America in large part because of the relentless war waged by both the Obama and Biden administrations against the energy sector. This sector is the backbone of our state’s economy, supporting tens of thousands of direct and indirect jobs and small businesses that support working families. I am working relentlessly with the Trump administration to bring those jobs, and more private-sector opportunities, back to our state.”
For now, federal workers can always turn to the State of Alaska, which currently has 365 vacancies listed. Democrats in the House and Senate repeatedly say that because there is no defined benefits pension plan, Alaska can’t attract or keep state workers. But that may be a distant memory if Murkowski is right and there are 100 people looking for government jobs.
At the State of Alaska, there are jobs for accountants and correctional officers, and the Alaska Marine Highway System has a vacancy rate of about 24%.
View all the job listings at the State of Alaska at this link.
According to the the publication Government Executive, here are nationwide figures for the reduction in workforce:
Agriculture Department
- Forest Service – 2,400
- Food and Nutrition Service – number unknown
Commerce Department
- National Weather Service – number unconfirmed.
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau – 70, according to the union representing National Treasury employees.
Defense Department – number unconfirmed.
Education Department – 60, according to the American Federation of Government Employees.
Energy Department – number unconfirmed, but employees shared their notices with Government Executive.
- National Nuclear Security Administration – number unconfirmed.
Environmental Protection Agency – 388, the agency reported, less than half of its probationary employees.
General Services Administration – 100 or more.
Health and Human Services Department – number unconfirmed.
Homeland Security Department – 400 or more.
Office of Personnel Management – number unconfirmed.
NASA – number unconfirmed.
National Science Foundation – 168.
Small Business Administration – number unconfirmed.
Transportation Department – up to 300 at the Federal Aviation Administration.
U.S. Department of Government Efficiency Service (formerly U.S. Digital Service) – number unconfirmed.
Veterans Affairs Department – 1,000.
Today President Trump reported he is firing all of the attorneys at the Department of Justice that were hired under the Biden Administration. That ought to generate a few lawsuits from the legal eagles that had been going after him on the public dime for the past four years.
100 is probably a good start, let’s get to the State and Municipality too…
Government does not exist for the purpose of providing employment. Government should not be the leading source of a nation or state’s economic activity.
Also, how did Keystone Pipeline workers fair after the Biden Administration shut it down on day 1 of his administration by Executive Order?
Well said on both fronts.
Completely agree.
Curious as to who the unions involved in Keystone endorsed for president during that fake election period?
The unions involved in construction of Keystone were the Laborers International Union of North America (LIUNA), the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, the International Union of Operating Engineers, and the United Association of Union Plumbers and Pipefitters (UA). In the 2020 U.S. presidential election, the Laborers’ International Union of North America (LIUNA), the International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE), and the United Association of Union Plumbers and Pipefitters (UA) endorsed Joe Biden for president. The International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT), however, did not endorse any candidate in that election.
Need an EO to return all government land owned in the state back to the state and the people. Federal Government was never meant to be a landowner except the 10 Square miles known as the District of Columbia.
Et tu, Mr. Sullivan? Government sucks money out of the economy.
DOGE should investigate all the taxpayer money that goes to special interests like REAP, AKPIRG, and The Alaska Center for Environment. These anti reliable energy wack-jobs only serve to increase energy costs and decrease reliability.
DOGE should strip all federal funding from NGO’s that support the Green New Scam!
I love the folks protesting in Fairbanks and Anchorage some of their comments paid for was Musk is not elected news flash there is only one person in the White house that is elected Trump. Where in the constitution says Trump cannot balance the budget matter of fact it says Receipts and Expenditures of all public Money shall be published from time to time. Article 1 Section 9.
100 is nowhere near enough!!!
Too bad President Trump can’t fire Murkowski…
But she can be arrested if found for fraud
For those of us who have worked in both the private sector and the public sector, and, have been layed-off, fired, or terminated for other reasons, it’s hard to wrap your head around these belly-aching federal employees. GO FIND ANOTHER JOB!!! It’s a fact of life. You aren’t guaranteed a living in the USA.
Hey, not to worry : We are still paying the salaries of school teachers and bureaucrats in UKRAINE. Maybe if those that were let go would have expressed some concerns about that, they would still have jobs.
Murkowski has no problem sending billions to Ukraine or Israel, but fire a few “goovies” and she is completely up in arms… what a joke government we have in Merika’.
How many government worker were RIF durning the Biden Obama Clinton and Bush administration ? Add President Trump name to a RIF people are up in arms. I took the Reduction in force in 2008 accepted a nice early retirement package. Federal worker are becoming Democrat sheep
Remember when we were crying 6 months ago (or less) about how we had a worker shortage in Alaska? Even went so far as to create an “immigrant employment center”……Clean up this mess and we’ll suddenly realize that our economy is funded either directly or indirectly by money printing.
Slash and burn
I’m so tired of Lisa. She never says a word when private sector jobs are lost, only when they affect her real constituents in the swamp – the deep state.
Shifting employees from federal to state just transfers the problem. If the state needs help it should fire 3 non-essential employees for every new hire.
Gotta wonder if neocon Danny is still keeping the lights on at the “International Republican Institute” swamp he chairs.
Elon himself had to question the legality of pack of connected goofs, led by Ohio’s own neocon Danny, getting away with soaking American taxpayers for $130.7 million from USAID and it’s more than fair to further wonder where those hard-earned tax dollars really went as well as what might be clawed back:
‘https://x.com/OcrazioCornPop/status/1886470568242720866
Time for Dunleavy to release the Northern Economics salary study
I very much agree that the false argument used by defined benefits advocates in Juneau (the legislators and public employee unions demanding that PERS and TRS offer DB), especially Senators Giessel and Kiehl, and Representative Kopp, makes those advocates into liars when they say their motivation is the inability to fill state jobs. The Trump house-cleaning, just beginning now, is the best possible opportunity for Alaska state and municipal government to hire government workers. Dismissed federal workers will easily transition from the 40 hour federal work-week to the 37.5 hour Alaska state and municipal work-week.
Those legislators kowtowing to the public employee unions are also dishonest in their disregard for the tremendous monthly Social Security benefits increase for Alaska public employees that became law last month (and retroactive to 1/1/24) that now gives those state and municipal workers, including teachers, law enforcement, etc. a full DB retirement. Alaskans will benefit from this change, the Social Security Fairness Act, more than residents and workers of any other state. It’s a PFD sized windfall.
Jobs available. Apparently there is noone to harvest crops since illegals are being sent packing. Jobs available
Most of us are ready for the dismantling of the Anchorage assembly and muni to happen next. Let’s get to it.
When I left the state for the fed, it was a 38% raise. When I left the fed for the private sector 2 years later in 2022, it was a 20% raise. The State of Alaska is so far from being a competetive employer that it’s laughable, and y’all act like it’s a gravy train.
Did you move into new positions or was it a lateral move, and are you counting your overall compensation package or just hourly pay?
Lateral move, similar duties with smaller duty area. Hourly pay only. STEM jobs. Private sector includes supervising small teams for field projects, which is an added responsibility but has a bonus structure not included in the 20% figure. At this point the state only retains old hands with pension benefits, household second incomes staying for the health insurance, and the marginally skilled.
Nunya, you’re still avoiding the actual gravy train issue; It does not matter how much or how little a Federal employee got paid. What the real question is that were the jobs/titles and/or employees actually doing anything to merit a paycheck at all.
Burned once by a government, many will not want to work for another one.
That was my experience as an air traffic controller during President Reagan’s time in office. After the “strike” I resigned to enjoy a peaceful life in private occupations.
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