Weeks after the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), under the direction of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), furloughed federal contractors, and later provisional and fully onboarded employees, a federal judge has questioned the constitutionality of a process spearheaded by Elon Musk.
However, furloughed federal government contractor Necilia Jones had already moved on, applying for more than 100 private sector jobs. The search, she said, has bore some fruit, but not to the degree that she would like.
“Twelve to 13 [jobs] have written back to say they’re not interested [but] I’ve gotten about seven interviews,” Jones told The Informer on March 18 as she turned the pages of a notebook documenting her job search. “I’m not worried necessarily because I had leave and paid time off. My unemployment [also] came and then it’s tax season so thank God for that.”
Four years ago, Jones started working at USAID as a contractor. Throughout her tenure, she served as a program assistant and later, an executive assistant in USAID’s Office of Human Capital and Talent Management — roles she said put her in direct contact with Samantha Power, a former diplomat who, with the closure of USAID, no longer serves as agency administrator.
During the latter part of January, shortly after President Donald J. Trump entered office for the second time, Jones counted among those who found out their jobs had been cut. She recounted later receiving a letter that made her unemployment official while further affirming a mindset she adopted in November, when Trump defeated then-Vice President Kamala Harris in the general election.
“It’s an opportunity for empowerment … to be less dependent on the government and organizations where you do not necessarily [work in alignment with] passion,” said Jones, a native Washingtonian who lives in Capitol Heights, Maryland. “Now you have time to go back and really look into what you really want to do with your life. This is an opportunity to…take a risk, maybe [start] businesses and partnerships, consult, and continue the work.”
Since losing her job, Jones has been putting plans together to leverage her Level 2 Reiki attunement certification to carry out, on her own terms, some of the work that made USAID a target of the Trump administration.
That’s why, for the time being, she said she’s not hard-pressed for a job, especially one that compromises her values.
“I’ve been looking at organizations that are supportive of Black and Brown people,” Jones told The Informer. “Nonprofits, people that I can really work with and see the difference that I’m making within the community or the business that I’m working for.”
Delegate Norton Responds to DOGE
Since Jones and other furloughed government contractors and employees started applying for unemployment insurance, the economic fallout from DOGE’s extreme budget-cutting measures has become clearer.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics recently reported a slight uptick in unemployment nationwide as DOGE facilitated federal job cuts, and the shrinking and closure of federal agencies. In the District, the loss of federal jobs — and tax revenue — has presented a FY26 budget quandary for D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser (D) and the D.C. Council, both of whom have the task of closing a budget gap anticipated to reach $300 million in the next fiscal year.
On the Hill, D.C. Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton (D) and other House Democrats remain consistent in their demand that Republicans in both chambers hold Trump and Musk, the head of DOGE, accountable for what she defines as egregious constitutional violations.
Since DOGE initiated the furloughs, House Democrats filed a lawsuit to prevent the closure of the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau, but introduced legislation aimed at protecting federal agencies and workers against political attacks, and prohibiting the transfer of any federal agency outside of the D.C. metropolitan region.
During a tele-town hall that Norton’s office organized on Tuesday evening, Norton, in the midst of a battle for the District’s local Fiscal Year 2025 funds, hinted at other legislation she’s drafting. If she successfully moves these bills through both chambers, federal employees terminated during their probationary period would be reinstated with back pay, while firefighters could obtain their unemployment insurance benefits more easily.
These efforts, she said, are all she could do for the thousands of federal workers at the Trump administration’s mercy.
“It’s clear that the president and [Elon] Musk want to dismantle much of the federal government, gut the federal workforce, and fill federal jobs with political loyalists in violation of the Constitution, statutes, and regulations,” Norton told her constituents on Tuesday evening.
”Federal employees who provide invaluable services to the American people deserve praise, not division, cruelty, fear and chaos,” Norton continued. “While I am deeply disappointed Congress has not done more to stop these attacks by the president and Musk, my House Democratic colleagues and I, despite being in a minority — which means we do not control the committees on the floor, and do not have superpower — have responded to these attacks using the legislative oversight, litigation, and communication tools at our disposal.”
The Public and Private Sectors Unite to Help Furloughed Federal Workers
Last week, D.C. Department of Employment Services (DOES) Director Dr. Unique Morris-Hughes told The Informer that the agency has received at least 12,000 unemployment insurance claims so far this year. Though it remains unclear whether the filings will reach pandemic levels, she said employment personnel are prepared to engage up to 38,200 former federal government employees — or 20% of the D.C.-based federal government workforce.
“We are more prepared today than we probably have ever been,” Morris-Hughes said as she delved into DOES’ technological upgrades.
“We have a brand-new system that we’ve been running for the last year that makes the process more seamless, easier to use and navigate, and it’s a bit of a one-stop shop so everything is there for a claimant,” Morris-Hughes continued. “I got folks working in our call center. I got claims examiners. I have federal employee coordinators to support that specific population.”
However, it doesn’t stop there for Morris-Hughes, who identified a pathway to full-time employment for furloughed federal government employees and contractors as her North Star.
“Because unemployment insurance is a Band-Aid,” she said, “it’s not the fix to provide a livelihood for yourself and your family.”
To fulfill that goal, DOES conducted a job fair on March 14 for former federal government workers and contractors on the grounds of the Kellogg Conference Center at Gallaudet University in Northeast.
The fair, titled “Gateway to District Careers Federal Hiring Event,” attracted 1,700 people, many of whom learned about hundreds of local public sector and private sector jobs.
For hours, applicants walked through the halls of the conference center, spoke with employers, and attended seminars about updating a resume.
More than 60 District agencies, public charter schools, nonprofit organizations and businesses engaged prospective employees in conversation about their offerings.
Those who attended the fair also had a chance to create a LinkedIn account profile and secure a professional headshot.
Jerome Shepherd, an engineer who lives in Mitchellville, Maryland, said the job fair paid dividends for him at a time when he’s looking into the future.
“I still have my position…but I still could be riffed [reduced in force],” Shepherd told The Informer. “A friend tipped me off about the job fair and I decided to check it out. I’m glad I did. I just accepted a contingent offer with the D.C. Department of General Services.”