Civilian employees at Twentynine Palms Marine Base facing cutbacks

At least for a while it will not be business as usual at the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center in Twentynine Palms.

The nearly 3,300 civilians employed at the base are bracing to see their hours reduced due to the sequester, the $85 billion in spending cuts being split between the military and domestic programs.

Overall 64,000 civilian U.S. Department of Defense workers statewide are about to be furloughed. Full-time civilian employees at the Twentynine Palms base will see their work week cutback to 32 hours.

“They’re very important and very valued part of our membership and our team. It will be an impact on our day-to-day operations, but we’re gonna keep the faith and get through this together as a team,” said U.S. Marine Corps Captain, Nick Mannweiler.

Any civilians deployed to combat zones or who work in security will be exempted from the reduced hours.

The furlough period is scheduled to begin in mid April and run through October, which marks the end of the Marine Corps’ fiscal year.