Study: US Government Will Need to Go on Hiring Binge, Legal Jobs Included
A study by a think tank says the federal government needs to hire more than 270,000 workers in “mission-critical” jobs, and the legal sector is one of five fields where more workers are needed.
The study by the Partnership for Public Service says hiring will need to be beefed up, partly to replace retiring baby boomers, the Washington Post reports. More workers will also be needed to handle new challenges planned by the Obama administration, such as repair of the financial sector and climate change.
The survey says most of the new workers will be needed in five fields: medical, security, law enforcement, legal and administrative. A separate chart published by the Washington Post puts the number of legal hires needed at 23,596, and says the total number of federal employees in the legal field currently stands at 75,420.
The story says the study, based on a survey of 35 agencies, is “necessarily imprecise,” since it depends on unknowns such as actual retirements, government use of outsourcing, and Congress’ budget appropriations.
Max Stier, president and chief executive of the Partnership for Public Service, told the newspaper that, despite the bad economy, many federal agencies will have to fight to attract top talent, especially in fields where private-sector salaries are higher than government pay.
The fields most likely to see competition with the private sector, he said, are legal, medical and information technology.
Related coverage:
ABAJournal.com: “Federal Careers Expert Offers Tips on Jobs in Attorney Honors Programs”
ABA Journal: “The Job Is In Your Sites”
Updated on Sept. 4 to include related coverage.