FORT HOOD — Fort Hood said they will be dropping 29 civilian employee positions to address budget issues.
They are holding four town halls at Howze Auditorium to inform the civilians of how the Reduction in Force process will work.
Fort Hood has been preparing for this type of process even before the announcement.
"The mock RIF was intended, that we ran in April, the mock RIF essentially gave us a snapshot in time to see ourselves in preparation for this, but it also, for an eventual RIF, if we were directed to it, which now we are, so it did put us in the best position possible," Fort Hood Garrison Commander Hank Perry said.
The 29 employees will be identified and given notice by July 16. The process will start on July 2, according to leadership.
This has been an ongoing process for Fort Hood dating back to 2016 when they had 190 over-hires from the target number of civilian employees.
The leadership lowered that number in the past couple of years by offering early retirement options, placement programs and by moving civilians internally.
Perry said they have to get the number of employees down to 1108 employees by the end of the fiscal year.
The 29 positions will be eliminated, but those that receive a pink slip may be reassigned to another position or downgraded to a lower level where there are current job openings.
Those employees that may be downgraded may retain their current salaries for up to two years, according to Fort Hood's Perry.
"Losing any of our employees, it hurts, because that comes at a cost somewhere inside our organization, So of course I would hope to retain as many of our employees as possible," Perry said.
Fort Hood is not only installation impacted. Others include Fort Riley, Fort Stewart and Fort Meade, Aberdeen Proving Grounds and the Army's Installation Command.
