By now, there can be no doubt that the POS hates and is determined to destroy the world’s most powerful military:
- He purged the military of some of its top officers (see here and here).
- He’s destroying the military’s command structure by changing personnel policy to require top officers be reviewed by subordinates.
- He’s destroying our soldiers’ morale by:
- Not just ending “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell”, but
- Giving homosexuals preferential treatment while punishing and silencing critics;
- Threatening to court martial soldiers for sharing their Christian faith.
- He’s callous about our soldiers’ wellbeing by:
Here’s the latest.
ABC7/WJLA reports, May 30, 2013, that the greater D.C. region’s two military hospitals — Walter Reed and Fort Belvoir — are furloughing more than 3,500 civilian employees who care for America’s wounded warriors.
A furlough is a temporary layoff. The furloughs at the two military hospitals stem from the automatic budget cuts from sequestration.
The impacted employees are from departments across the board at both hospitals, including members of the trauma team, physical therapists and nurses. They will be forced to take 11 unpaid furlough days starting in July.
The 3,500 employees who are furloughed comprise nearly the entire civilian staffs of the two hospitals:
- 94% (or 2,392) of the civilian staff at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda.
- 85% (or 1,163) of the civilian caregivers at Fort Belvoir’s hospital in Virginia.
Officials promise patient care will not be compromised. Walter Reed said in a statement: “The assessment of over 2,500 civilian positions determined that 163 staff exemptions were necessary to maintain the highest levels of care for warrior inpatients and outpatients in rehabilitation and other critical areas. Fortunately, our wounded warrior census is significantly lower than experienced during the peak wartime period, yet our staffing remains consistent with peak levels.”
Hospital officials refused ABC7’s repeated requests for an interview. But a staffer who spoke with ABC7 said employees were told not to speak with the media.
Out of the Department of Defense’s 800,000 civilian workers, about 68,000 are exempt from the furloughs. Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel has said furloughs will save the DoD $1.8 billion.
H/t FOTM’s pnordman.
~Eowyn
