Prez lifts fed hiring freeze

WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump lifted his two-month-old hiring freeze on federal employees April 12, but will take several months before billets at the Defense Department and Veterans Affairs are filled. Office of Management and Budget Director Mick Mulvaney said he expects many government positions left open during the hiring freeze will never be filled in efforts to streamline federal operations and cut waste. In January, President Trump ordered a halt to all civilian hiring across the executive branch “regardless of the sources of their operational and programmatic funding.” The freeze didn't include military and exempted some key Pentagon intelligence and VA medical jobs. The freeze was set to end April 28. Federal agencies will have two months to examine their workforce and suggest ways to reduce staffing without compromising services. The Associated Press reported that despite the hiring freeze, the federal government added some 2,000 workers in February. (Source: Military Times 04/12/17)