ARLINGTON, Virginia — As President Donald Trump and the newly-established Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) roll out sweeping layoffs in an effort to slash government spending, thousands of federal workers and contractors across the U.S. have been left jobless, with many now facing an uncertain future.
In response to the growing crisis, Congressman Don Beyer spearheaded a resource fair on March 8 at Wakefield High School to provide critical support and resources to those affected in his state.
The event, which was open to all county residents, was designed to offer resources such as unemployment assistance, mental health support, housing information, food aid, and legal guidance on federal workers’ rights. It attracted over 200 attendees, including residents and local government officials.
Fired en masse
The wave of job cuts has devastated workers from various federal agencies, noted Beyer, who represents Northern Virginia in the U.S. House of Representatives. “I represent a district in Northern Virginia that is one of the prime targets of Trumpian contempt,” said Beyer, adding that his “constituents are seeing their livelihoods destroyed — often illegally — by Trump and [Elon] Musk based on utterly false accusations of wrongdoing or of poor performance.”
Beyer noted that many workers have been dismissed without notice, leaving them in financial jeopardy and without resources to turn to. “These are people who devoted their lives to curing diseases, to keeping us safe from natural disasters, and to feeding the hungry and housing the homeless,” said Beyer, who opted out of attending President Trump’s address to Congress on March 4.
For the best of our weekly content！
You are now signed up for our newsletter
Check your email to complete sign up
He added, “These are good people, usually all with college educations, many with advanced degrees. They’re hard workers, valuable employees — and we are doing our best to get them the resources they need.”
A saturated job market
As the economic uncertainty grows, impacted employees shared their distressing experiences of abrupt terminations and an increasingly competitive job market. For many federal workers, the layoffs came as an abrupt shock, especially for those who had been recently promoted but were still in probationary periods, leaving them with little to no recourse to fight back.
A 45-year-old economist at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau voiced his concerns about the legality of the firings. “All probationary employees and recent college graduates at the EPA were illegally fired. They’re trying to shut us down,” he told Annandale Today.
Though a temporary restraining order has been put in place to challenge the job cuts, workers remain in limbo. “We’re all competing for the same jobs,” he said, adding that the General Services Administration (GSA) has even canceled office leases.
A former Office of Refugee Resettlement worker, who lost her job in January, is now seeking housing assistance to support her family. “I’m hoping for an office job, but if that doesn’t happen, I’ll look at waitress jobs,” she said.
J.C., a 30-year-old Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) employee, was on his honeymoon when he discovered he had been abruptly fired. Upon returning, he found himself locked out of his work email and unable to access any unemployment benefits.
“The immediate impact on my livelihood is devastating,” said K.J., a 36-year-old single mother from Alexandria who was let go from USAID in a mass firing. “I’ve lived according to my means. Now I’m figuring it out day by day.”
A state of turmoil
Adding to the concerns, Beyer noted that the hiring process for available positions is becoming fiercely competitive. “4,000 people applied for one job,” he said, highlighting the grim reality for those seeking employment in government or in the private sector.
Many attendees at the resource fair also expressed their growing fear of further layoffs. A 39-year-old Census Bureau employee stated, “Everyone’s really scared right now. There’s no information about what we can expect.”
Some also believe that DOGE, which spearheaded the firings, is acting with disregard for the affected workers. “It’s clear that the DOGE people are taking pleasure in other people’s suffering,” she added.
One long-time industry analyst at the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) described the growing paranoia among employees. “There’s a lot of backstabbing going on in the office, with some people accusing co-workers of not doing good work. I don’t trust my supervisor. I don’t feel safe,” he said. With 25 years in government service, he is weighing early retirement, but worries about retaining federal health benefits.
‘Absolutely heartbreaking’
Jeffrey McKay, Chairman of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors, condemned the terminations and called them “absolutely heartbreaking.” He emphasized the consequences for Northern Virginia’s economy, which has long depended on a stable federal workforce.
McKay noted that “as of last week, there were over 90,000 vacant jobs on the northern Virginia jobs.com website, but as of this week, that’s been halved.”
“In Fairfax County, we have approximately 80,000 federal employees, and that doesn’t include all the contractors and subcontractors and small businesses that exist because of federal spending,” said McKay. “What we’re trying to do here today is build awareness so that people know we have resources available to them if they lose their job due to federal actions.”
He added, “What’s most important today is that we’re here to support federal employees who, at no fault of their own, have lost their job, and we know that’s thousands of people here in Fairfax County.”
McKay also criticized Virginia’s leadership for failing to intervene. “I hope the governor sees all these Virginians, because the governor should be helping with this, and instead has decided this is okay,” he said. “This is not okay. This is not normal. Northern Virginia’s economy is under attack, which means Virginia’s economy is under attack.”
Proving immediate assistance
Despite the dire circumstances, the resource fair aimed to raise awareness and provide immediate assistance to those in need. Representatives from Fairfax County, Arlington County, and Alexandria worked alongside nonprofit organizations to connect displaced workers with essential services.
RELATED: US Spending Cuts in Motion: Where Government Spending Stands Now and Where It’s Going
“We have more than 100 lawsuits in the courts to try and restore people’s jobs and force the government to hire them back,” said Beyer. “We are also trying to work with employers through chambers of commerce to get people engaged in meaningful work.”
Leave a Comment