Government Job Openings Jump by 104,000

Public employers have spent years trying to rebuild their workforces. Police departments, public health agencies, transportation departments, corrections facilities and city offices all lost workers during and after the pandemic. The latest federal data shows state and local governments are still trying to hire, and that demand remains strong.

What the data shows

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that job openings in state and local government, excluding education, rose by 104,000 in September. That was one of the largest increases of any sector, as we noted in our JOLTS analysis.

Government employment rose by 6,000 in October, according to the BLS jobs report. In Kentucky, government employment stood at about 315,100 in September, making the public sector one of the state's largest employers.

Openings rising faster than hiring suggests public employers are struggling to fill positions, not simply choosing to hold them open.

Why public hiring is hard

Speed is a persistent problem. Many government hiring processes involve civil service exams, multiple rounds of approval, background investigations and fixed hiring calendars. Candidates who apply in the spring may not receive an offer for months. By then, many have accepted jobs elsewhere. Our guide to time to hire explains why speed matters across all sectors.

Pay gaps are another issue. Many public jobs offer strong benefits, including pensions and stable health coverage, but base pay often trails the private sector for skilled roles like engineers, IT specialists, accountants and nurses. Younger workers may value immediate pay more than long-term retirement benefits.

Retirements are reducing experienced staff. Many public agencies have workforces with long tenure and older average ages. As those workers retire, agencies lose institutional knowledge along with headcount. Police departments are a clear example, as we reported in our police staffing report.

Public job postings also tend to be written in dense, formal language that discourages applicants. Long lists of minimum qualifications, unclear titles and lengthy application forms can make a job seem harder to get than it is. Plain-language postings, as described in our guide to job descriptions, can widen the pool.

What is working

Some public employers have shortened hiring timelines by accepting applications continuously rather than on fixed schedules, holding hiring events with same-day interviews and offers, and running background checks in parallel with other steps. Those changes can cut months from the process.

Others have removed degree requirements for roles where experience and skills matter more. The State of Minnesota and the City of Denver were cited among the leaders in a Harvard Business School and Burning Glass Institute study, as we explain in our report on skills-based hiring.

Apprenticeships and paid training programs are growing in the public sector as well. Water utilities, transportation agencies and public works departments use them to train operators, mechanics and technicians. Our guide to Registered Apprenticeship covers how those programs work.

Clear communication about benefits helps. Many candidates underestimate the value of public sector benefits. Total compensation statements that show the value of pensions, health coverage, paid leave and loan forgiveness eligibility can make public jobs more competitive.

Internship and fellowship programs bring students and early-career workers into public service and let agencies evaluate them before offering permanent roles. Partnerships with community colleges and local universities make those programs easier to run.

Lessons for private employers

The public sector's challenges offer lessons for private employers too. Slow processes cost candidates. Benefits that are not clearly explained do not attract applicants. Retirements without succession planning leave gaps that take years to fill.

Public employers also show the value of mission. Many people choose government work because they want to serve their community. Private employers can learn from that by explaining clearly how each role contributes to customers, patients or neighbors.

Private employers also compete with government for some of the same workers, including IT staff, engineers, nurses and skilled trades. When public agencies improve their hiring, private employers in the same markets may feel the competition.

Public budgets face pressure in some states and cities, which could slow hiring in 2027. But many of the openings reflect essential services, such as public safety, utilities and transportation, that cannot easily be cut. Agencies that modernize hiring, explain total compensation clearly and invest in training are likely to fill more of those roles.

For HR leaders in any sector, the lesson is the same. A strong candidate pool means little if the process is too slow or too opaque to turn applicants into employees.