Deputy Secretary Ashton Carter told Reuters the department could also furlough most of its 800,000 full-time civilian employees, who would take day of unpaid leave per week for the last 22 weeks of the fiscal year.
Carter said the personnel actions could save the department $5 billion, according to the report.
The Pentagon is facing a $45 billion cut scheduled for March 1 and also does not have appropriated defense funds for fiscal 2013, David Alexander writes.
Currently, the Pentagon is running on a continuing resolution that keeps funding at 2012 levels until March 27, the report said.