JFCOM Is Shut Down; So Are Contractor Jobs About 2,000 contractor employees lost their jobs when the Joint Forces Command shut down Aug. 4. More than 1,000 others either continue working under different leadership or will be retained to phase out their work for JFCOM. The command employed more than 3,200 contractors, along with a military and civilian workforce of about 2,000. Northrop Grumman and General Dynamics were the major JFCOM contractors, but many small businesses have taken big hits. Vivek Malhotra, CEO of VMD Systems, expects to lay off 75 people, half his workforce. He called it “a big setback.” Defense Secretary Robert Gates recommended abolishing the command, headquartered in Suffolk, VA, as part of a money-saving initiative. JFCOM’s last commander, Gen. Ray Odierno, estimated the closing would save $450 million annually. While some of the command’s functions were transferred to other defense agencies, the closure could have a devastating impact on the Hampton Roads area of Virginia. The research firm GovWin says the area, around Norfolk and Virginia Beach, is one of the nation’s most military-dependent regions. The Daily Press of Newport News reported that JFCOM contractors earned average salaries nearly double those of the region’s average worker. Many of them are engineers, analysts and technicians. James Koch, an economics professor at Old Dominion University, told the newspaper the shutdown will leave a $500 million dollar hole in the area’s economy. At ceremonies marking the closure, Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said JFCOM worked itself out of a job. It mission was to foster joint operations among the armed services. As a result of those efforts, Mullen said, “Our young men and women in theater are now not only fighting and operating, but thinking jointly,” the Norfolk Virginian-Pilot reported. He added, “Our greatest security threat is our national debt.”