Emily Cormier was notified on Feb. 13, 2025, that her job at the Department of Veterans Affairs as a program assistant was terminated. (Emily Cormier)

Emily Cormier says she’ll never forget the moment she got the termination notice.

It was Feb. 13, and she was relaxing with her family in their Virginia home when she received a frantic call from her supervisor, telling her to check her email.

After scrambling to her laptop, she saw a message sent at 7:11 p.m. stating that she had lost her job at the Department of Veterans Affairs as a program assistant.

The email, reviewed by Stars and Stripes, cited her performance as a factor in the firing, though she had only been there for four months and hadn’t yet had a review.

Cormier said she went numb. Her husband, an active-duty service member, was awaiting permanent change of station orders. They were months away from moving their family, including two young children, to a new town.

Cormier counted on her entry into the federal employment system to ease that transition.

Instead, the job that helped them afford car payments and day care — the job that she had hoped would provide stability amid the constant change of military life — was gone.

“I’d always viewed the federal government as ‘this is where I needed to be,’” she said in an online interview. “That’s changed now.”

Cormier is among an unknown number of military spouses who have lost their jobs as part of reductions in the federal workforce. The cuts have dealt financial blows to the affected military spouses and their families, who often struggle to find the work they say is necessary to supplement service members’ income.

The loss is likely to cause stress and hardship on members of the military, experts and advocates say, impacting readiness and, potentially, hurting retention numbers.

“When you don’t have stable home situations and you’re worrying about your spouse, you’re worrying about spouse employment, you’re worrying about income ... it impacts readiness, it impacts stability,” said retired Lt. Gen. Brian Kelly, chief executive officer of the Military Officers Association of America. “The calculus for military service is: when the hardships and the difficulties outweigh the benefits, then retention suffers.”

Job hunting is a chronic issue for military spouses, who face unemployment rates far higher than the general public — about 20% compared to the current national average of 4%. Last year, more than three-quarters of active-duty spouses reported that two incomes were vital for their families’ well-being, according to a yearly survey of Blue Star Families, with 54% listing employment as their top concern.

Regular relocation makes it difficult to maintain steady work, particularly in the private sector, spouses say. One in four active-duty families experienced food insecurity in 2023, according to a survey from the Military Family Advisory Network. In some cases, spouses and their families choose to live apart from their service members in order to keep up a second income, a practice known as geo-baching.

Overseas stations present even more challenges, with U.S. and NATO country restrictions blocking spouses from the job market and resulting in thousands of military families living abroad on food stamps and low-income assistance.

Federal jobs, when they’re available, can provide more stability — allowing husbands and wives of service members to stay at the same agency or department over the course of several moves.

The federal government for years offered a hiring preference for military spouses. In 2018, President Donald Trump signed an executive order seeking to provide greater opportunity for military spouses to be considered for federal competitive service positions.

Kelly, at MOAA, said he understands the goal of making the government more efficient, but said it’s inevitable that the cuts will impact the military.

“You will have readiness immediately suffer because some people who are highly skilled and capable either aren’t able to focus on their mission or don’t retain,” he said.

Emmalee Gruesen, a Virginia-based military spouse, helps run a Facebook group for fellow wives and husbands working in the federal government. She said the group has seen a significant uptick in membership since the administration started cutting the workforce last month, and that many military families have been left struggling and seeking support.

“Certainly we are realizing how fragile many people’s financial situation is,” said Gruesen, who works for the Navy. “It doesn’t matter if you’re dual income, suddenly you are still paycheck to paycheck. We’re hearing from people who are dipping into savings because, not knowing what will happen, they don’t want to give up child care spots.”

Erin White, an Air Force veteran was let go from her job at the Food and Drug Administration on Feb. 15, 2025. White, whose husband is also a retired veteran, received a notice of termination citing poor work performance as the cause of separation, without offering specifics. (Erin White)

It’s unclear exactly how many military spouses have lost their jobs in the last month following several executive orders and actions by the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency. In 2021, the Defense Department alone employed about 46,000 military spouses, according to the U.S. Government Accountability Office.

Defense officials said last week they’re planning to cut about 5,400 employees who are still in a probationary period, which is generally those who have been hired within the last one to two years.

That included Erin White, an Air Force veteran who earlier this month was let go from her job at the Food and Drug Administration.

White, whose husband is also a retired veteran, joined the FDA’s communications team after a stint working with the Navy. She had to serve a probationary period upon changing jobs.

On Feb. 15, she received her termination notice. As with other federal employees, the message cited poor work performance as the cause of separation, without offering specifics.

“Obviously we’re taking a really big hit here,” she said. “We’re fortunate enough that we can make ends meet, but it’s just not going to be comfortable. Hopefully I can find another job before we run out of savings.”

There is some hope that the administration will take steps to lessen the blow to military families. The U.S. Office of Personnel Management last week issued a memo exempting military spouses who had been on remote work contracts from a return-to-office mandate.

Military spouses who have been let go from their federal jobs have used an online template, located at https://shorturl.at/G2TQK, to underscore the impact. (Facebook)

Spouses and advocates, meanwhile, have been speaking out about their experiences, taking to social media and contacting members of Congress.

Maria Donnelly, another moderator in the federally employed spouses’ Facebook page, said that, for some military families, relying on one income will be too much of a financial burden, and that some may leave the military to seek more flexibility and opportunities in the private sector.

“They are willing to serve,” she said. “But if it becomes too expensive or becomes untenable, something’s got to give.”