OKLAHOMA CITY — Civilian employees at Tinker Air Force Base in Midwest City have been left with uncertainty after a national labor leader incorrectly warned of imminent layoffs with no explanation and no follow-up.
Likewise, Oklahoma legislators are staying quiet, and local labor officials are claiming ignorance, all while 600 Oklahoman jobs remain up in the air and mass layoffs continue hitting federal agencies nationwide.
In late February, online Kansas-focused news outlet This is Topeka reported that 600 civilian employees at Tinker were being targeted for layoffs on the morning of Monday, February 24th. That news was based on “a credible tip,” the outlet said, from the National Vice President of the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) for the 9th District.
That role is currently held by AFGE 9th District National Vice President Diana Hicks.
The Oklahoman made contact with Hicks directly, who told them that, even if the order didn’t come on the 24th, she still expected those layoffs to happen that week.
They did not.
Now, more than two weeks after Hicks’ statement and the “credible tip” that she gave to This is Topeka, no layoff order has been given for Tinker and no explanation or follow-up has come from the AFGE.
“Right after that story broke, we had a lot of media calling about it and we didn’t have any response to it,” Tinker Public Affairs official Kimberly Woodruff told Free Press by phone Wednesday. “That’s still the way it is. We haven’t heard of any directive [for layoffs].”
Only rumors?
As the Trump administration and billionaire Elon Musk’s new Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, continue to force mass layoffs and departmental dismantling across the federal government, civilian employees at Oklahoma’s largest single-site employer have been understandably anxious.
Major cuts have been announced across the Department of Defense, and the Pentagon has said they’ve begun laying off more than 5,000 employees, or up to 8% of its civilian workforce.
So far, none of those layoffs have hit Tinker, despite Hicks’ warning that sent workers into a panic more than two weeks ago.
“We hadn’t heard anything,” Woodruff said of Tinker’s awareness of a layoff order when Hicks’ warning was first published.
When asked if talk of layoffs is still simply a rumor at this time, Woodruff replied “Exactly.”
No clarification
There has still been no official word on why Hicks would give that tip to This is Topeka, or why she would double down on her warning with The Oklahoman with such certainty.
Repeated attempts by Free Press to reach the national office for AFGE were unsuccessful. Emails have gone unreturned at publication and all calls to the AFGE’s national media line were met with a busy signal.
Attempts to reach AFGE Local 916 – the local AFGE office that directly represents laborers at Tinker – similarly bore little fruit.
After multiple unreturned voicemails, Free Press was finally able to connect by phone with AFGE Local 916 Treasurer Brenda Williams, designated to speak to the press about the possibility of layoffs at Tinker.
“I don’t have any update to give to you,” Williams said when pressed about that possibility or about whether the union has been told by their national leadership to prepare for layoffs. “I don’t have any update at all.”
No answers
As the state’s largest single-site employer and one of its largest economic contributors in both direct and indirect impact, employees, business leaders, and even federal legislators have been put on edge by rumors of layoffs coming to Tinker.
But there are currently no clear answers.
The Midwest City Chamber of Commerce – presumably the business booster organization that would be most concerned by large-scale downsizings at Tinker – flatly declined to comment at all when reached by Free Press.
Similarly, two of Oklahoma’s Congressional representatives that oversee areas most impacted by Tinker’s economic contributions gave no statement when pressed, and another provided a statement with no new information.
The office of Congressman Frank Lucas (R-OK 3rd District) made no return of requests for a statement about layoff rumors or support for Tinker workers.
Attempts to reach Congressman Tom Cole (R-OK 4th District) – in whose district Tinker is situated – resulted in one staffer directing Free Press to another staffer in his office that we were told would handle our inquiry, but that second staffer made no reply or return of our request.
Congresswoman Stephanie Bice (R-OK 5th District) did provide a new statement to Free Press, however, but she stopped short of guarantees or confirmations, saying only that the base’s “role” must be protected, but declining to mention jobs.
“While Tinker Air Force Base is outside my district, it does affect many individuals who live and or commute from the Fifth District,” Bice told Free Press via email. “My team and I have been in touch with other members of the Oklahoma delegation, leadership at Tinker Air Force Base and other officials over the last weeks. As we wait for further information, I will stay actively engaged and closely monitor the situation. Tinker plays a vital and necessary national security role that we must protect.”
Up in the air
When several federal agencies in Oklahoma appeared to be under threat of closure last week, Rep. Cole released the following statement:
“After working closely with DOGE and the Administration, I am thrilled to announce that common sense has prevailed, as the National Weather Center in Norman, the Social Security Administration Office in Lawton, and the Indian Health Services Office in Oklahoma City will remain operational in Oklahoma,” said Cole. “All three of these places provide vital and valuable services to Oklahomans and I am so proud to have advocated for them. As the Representative for Oklahoma’s Fourth District, I will always fight for Oklahomans and my constituents!”
That statement made no mention of Tinker, and repeated attempts by Free Press to ask if the Congressman – or if any of his fellow representatives in Oklahoma’s Congressional delegation – would similarly fight to secure reassurance of Tinker jobs resulted in no response.
For now, Tinker employees remain in a holding pattern, waiting for any official word about layoffs or about the security of their jobs.
Brett Fieldcamp has been covering arts, entertainment, news, housing, and culture in Oklahoma for nearly 15 years, writing for several local and state publications. He’s also a musician and songwriter and holds a certification as Specialist of Spirits from The Society of Wine Educators.
