Rep. Courtney Urges Secretary Hegseth to Protect Sub Base Firefighters from Dangerous Mass Firings at Defense Department
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Rep. Joe Courtney (CT-02), a senior member of the House Armed Services Committee, sent a letter to Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth sharing his deep concerns over the Department of Defense’s plan to cut eight percent of its probationary workforce, which could impact the firefighters at Naval Submarine Base New London.
“I write to express deep concern regarding the Department of Defense’s (the Department) planned reductions to the probationary workforce, particularly in light of reports that these cuts could impact essential personnel such as the firefighters at the Naval Submarine Base New London (SUBASE NL) in Connecticut.
“If workforce reductions are made based on arbitrary percentages, rather than an informed evaluation of mission-critical needs, we risk cutting personnel who provide life-saving services and compromising our ability to protect the very forces we seek to strengthen and have worked diligently to recruit and retain,” wrote Courtney.
“For example, firefighters at military installations, including those at the SUBASE NL in my district, are at risk of being fired because of their probationary status. These dedicated workers are not bureaucratic excess; they are an essential component of force readiness and safety,” Courtney continued.
The local union representing SUBASE firefighters also sounded the alarm on the Department’s announcement.
“If the termination of probationary employees is executed, the department will be brought to its knees, left incapable of providing emergency services with daily staffing at less than eight members at best,” wrote Tyler Zani, president of IAFF Local F-219.
Today’s action is part of Rep. Courtney’s ongoing work to stop President Trump and Elon Musk’s purge of the dedicated federal workforce.
This week, the Congressman joined 100+ House Democrats to call out Musk’s “Five Things” email and ensure federal employees were not terminated if they did not respond to his ill-conceived demand. Following Musk’s “Fork in the Road” email, the Congressman sent a letter to federal workers in eastern Connecticut urging them to scrutinize the deferred resignation offer. He is also pushing to advance the Support Veteran Civil Servants Act and the Saving the Civil Service Act to stop political attacks on dedicated, critical federal employees.
The Congressman stands ready to support any federal worker who has been laid off and is asking those impacted by the administration’s federal workforce purge to share their story. Resources for those impacted can be found at courtney.house.gov/fedworkers.