A Reston-based information technology company may lay off nearly 100 people by the end of this year.
Citing “uncertainty around the future of some contracts with federal agencies,” the contractor Peraton issued layoff notices to 92 employees earlier this month, the Washington Business Journal reported last week.
The potential layoffs would impact employees at the company’s corporate headquarters, located at 1875 Explorer Street in Reston Town Center, starting Dec. 5.
However, the issuance of the layoff notices is “precautionary,” and they could be rescinded before taking effect, according to a Peraton spokesperson.
“Peraton issues WARN notices to its employees, in an abundance of caution, to provide advance notice to its workforce in the event a contract may conclude earlier than expected based upon government funding uncertainties,” the spokesperson said in a statement that was also shared with the WBJ. “We will comply with any final government direction.”
Peraton noted that it has a “Family First” program that allows workers affected by contract changes to apply for “priority placement” for other positions in the company.
One of the largest government technology contractors in the D.C. area, Peraton didn’t specify whether the potential layoffs stem from the sweeping contract cuts undertaken by the Trump administration or a more standard contract termination.
A Peraton recruiter told FFXnow at a job fair in August that the company had been “impacted” by the White House’s mass contract cancellations this spring, but those losses were at least partially offset by new contract awards.
“Government contracts — including their completion and re-competition dates across multiple contracts — are based upon a number of factors including changes in Administration, current government funding, and shutdown situations,” Peraton’s spokesperson told WBJ.
The layoff notices were issued on Oct. 3, according to Virginia’s Department of Workforce Development and Advancement — three days into the current federal government shutdown.
Peraton, which was founded in 2017, established its first headquarters in Herndon that year. The company later relocated to its current 99,000-square-foot Reston office in late 2022.
More than 30% of the company’s approximately 18,000 employees are based near the nation’s capital, according to the Washington Business Journal.
Peraton is also currently hiring for dozens of jobs in Fairfax County, according to its website.
Peraton joins a growing list of Fairfax County businesses that have announced layoffs in response to rescinded or terminated contracts this year, including fellow Reston contractor Leidos and Mitre and Booz Allen Hamilton in Tysons.
According to a survey commissioned by the Northern Virginia Chamber of Commerce this summer, a majority of responding companies hadn’t experienced any impacts from the so-called Department of Government Efficiency’s activities, but 23% said they have downsized operations, and 7% had laid off staff.
