Federal workers at agencies targeted by the Department of Government Efficiency are actively searching for new posts. Job applications from workers at agencies targeted by DOGE increased 52% after January and are up 75% compared with the hot hiring market of 2022, according to a report issued Tuesday by job listing website Indeed. "We've never seen something like this after a presidential administration and inauguration," Indeed economist Cory Stahle says, per NBC News. Job applications from all federal workers also spiked 15% in January, the Washington Post reports.
"These figures are just a sign of what's to come," the outlet notes, as 16,000 of 24,000 fired federal probationary employees remain in limbo, waiting to see if the Supreme Court will uphold a judge's order that determined the firings were illegal. Unfortunately, "it's not a good time to be looking for a job" and the influx of educated job seekers—around 70% of federal workers active on Indeed have a bachelor's degree at minimum—is "going to increase the competitiveness of the labor market," Stahle tells NBC. The market could become even more competitive as federal contractors "may soon be affected by similar cuts," per the Post.
Those working in healthcare could find an easy transition—"the second-most common job title for actively searching federal workers in February was medical-support assistant," the Post reports—but federal workers clustered in specialized roles in a few locations will have a harder time and may need to acquire new skills. "It's possible that we see some people switch careers due to challenges in finding work," Stahle tells the Post. Amid such times of uncertainty, a drop in consumer spending is likely, economist Claudia Sahm tells NBC. (More federal employees stories.)
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