Understanding Hiring Trends in the United States Federal Workforce

Produced by:

The Civic Leadership Education and Research (CLEAR) Initiative

Mentors: Dr. William Resh, Eli Keunyoung Lee

Student Contributors: Yi Ming, Darren Cao, Sukwon Choi, Anderson Liu, Josephina Bian, Nicole Dias

Problem Statement: Public Sector Hiring Crisis

• Public sector jobs constitute 15-20% of the entire labor market.
• Unprecedented hiring crisis in public sector (local, state, federal levels)
• Lack of systematic understanding of job needs and openings.
• Impact on various stakeholders: education system, government agency, organizations.

Motivation and Objectives

• Provide a comprehensive view of current and emerging public sector job market trends.
• Enhance the understanding of public sector hiring dynamics
• Assess hiring trends: aptitudes, professions, entry levels, mobility, location.

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• Support researchers and practitioners in public and non-profit organizations.
• Aid educational institutions in aligning curriculum with market needs.

Data and Methods

Data Sources:

• USA Staffing & Monster (federal government staffing data)
• US Office of Personnel Management’s (OPM) (demographic data)
• Aviator(FAA) Hiring Assessment and Selection Outcome
• Occupational Handbook (qualitative data)

Methods:

• Data Infrastructure Development: Database; API; Dashboard
• Analysis:
• Qualitative: Content Analysis of Job Descriptions
• Quantitative: Multivariate Analysis of Longitudinal Data

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Web Application

Dashboard

Sample Analysis: A Case Study of DEIA in OPM

• In June 2021, President Joe Biden signed an Executive Order aimed to advance Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (DEIA) in the Federal Workforce.
• To examine the effectiveness of Biden’s order, our team examined trends among non-white and female applicants at the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM)
• The data, sourced from the USA Staffing and Monster hiring systems, shows patterns from individuals from non-white backgrounds and females between 2017 and 2021.

Case Study

Figure 1: Figure 2:

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• Minimal increase in non-white applicants since Q2 2021, compared to the large increase in non-white applicants from the Q1 2020 to Q3 2020.
• Ratio of non-white to white applicants has increased slightly since Q2 2021

Case Study

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Figure 3: Figure 4:

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• No increase in female applicants since Q2 2021, compared to the large increase in female applicants from the Q1 2020 to Q3 2020.
• Ratio of Female to Male applicants has increased since Q2 2021

Case Study Conclusions and Next Steps

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• While the proportion of non-white and female applicants has risen since the second quarter of 2021, the overall number of applicants has decreased, suggesting the Biden Order did not significantly impact the number of non-white and female applicants. Therefore, this observation suggests that structural inequalities still exist within OPM.
• This study focuses on the number of applicants rather than hiring results, but the low number of applicants may point to the OPM’s inadequate proactive measures in achieving DEIA goals.
• We plan to collect more data to determine whether the increase in the proportion of non-white and female applicants starting in the second quarter of 2021 is due to the Executive Order effects.
• We will also investigate whether the lack of significant reflection of Biden’s Executive Order within agencies is an issue exclusive to OPM or more widespread across various agencies.
• These findings highlight the importance of addressing these issues on a government-wide scale.

Thank You for Listening to our Presentation!

Group Photo in the Midterm:

(from left to right) Anderson Liu, Yi Ming, Eli Lee, Josephina Bian, Dr.William Resh, Daren Cao

Nicole Dias

Sukwon Choi