DOGE-directed layoffs at DOE could benefit the private sector

The mass firing of probationary government employees last week by the Trump administration’s DOGE team included thousands of employees at the Department of Energy. But this cataclysmic and controversial disruption could well turn out to be a boon for the private sector, as an unprecedented wave of potential employees with a wide range of technical skills not often on the job market becomes available.

That’s what happens when employees from multiple federal agencies — including the Environmental Protection Agency and Department of the Interior, in addition to the DOE — are essentially laid off without consideration of role and skillset.

“DOGE is an axe, right?” a recently terminated DOE employee noted to Trellis. “It’s just slashing randomly. It’s not planned.”

Indeed most, if not all, of the probationary firings at the DOE seemed to lack any rationale beyond their classification as probationary. “There were people I know who got fired, unfired, and then re-fired,” said the former employee, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. “It’s just incompetence.” 

Probationary employees are defined by the DOE as “the first year of employment after initial appointment during which an individual is generally excluded from the definition of “employee.” Those employees hired under Schedule A – the federal hiring program for workers with disabilities who remain under probation for two years – were included in the purge.

Probationary employees were reportedly targeted because “we have fewer protections,” according to the terminated employee, “so it’s easier to get away with.”

All told, as reported by Newsweek, an estimated 1,200 to 2,000 probationary workers at the DOE were let go. Before the purge, DOE employed approximately 14,000 federal workers, who were augmented by 95,000 contractors. And since the original wave of layoffs, contractors across the government faced their own round of terminations, and while the new total is still unclear, what is certain is that the overall total of layoffs at DOE has only increased. One department hit especially hard: the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), with an estimated 325 layoffs.

Reportedly, some of the NNSA layoffs were quickly rescinded — because, of course, “probationary” does not mean that those roles were not essential or that the employees lacked needed skills. 

“I worked for the federal government as a contractor for three years,” said the DOE employee, noting that while their probationary classification was accurate, their knowledge and experience far outpaced the label.

And this disconnect, which is likely applicable to hundreds (if not thousands) of workers affected by these recent cuts, has not been lost on the private sector.

Who’s hiring? Here are some clues

Hirers have already begun to tap the suddenly deepened talent pool. “To my furloughed and laid off international development friends,” wrote Melissa Benn, chief operating officer at the consulting firm Pioneer, “I’ve reviewed [around a] dozen resumes in the last week, and have compiled my top tips for pivoters into a quick blog … please reach out if I can help you, I’m happy to review more.”

Similarly, Anna Douglas, co-founder and CEO of the carbon capture and conversion company SkyNano, commented on a LinkedIn post addressed to DOE employees, saying, “SkyNano is hiring a Senior Scientist position — this certainly has overlapping skills requirements as many who have recent DOE experience.” At least a dozen other CEOs of climate tech companies weighed in similarly.

Meanwhile, recent federal castoffs are flooding job boards, including those of Climatebase.org, Trellis (GreenBiz) and Ally Energy. (Employers can follow the Fed News subreddit to stay up-to-date on agency layoffs.)

The ex-DOE employee also noted that after the layoffs the Association of Energy Services Professionals offered a free membership to DOE staffers who lost their jobs.