Federal Worker Happiness Drops

NCPA December 17, 2012

According to a new study that ranked places to work in the federal government, job satisfaction declined sharply in 2012. Rankings were determined by responses from about 700,000 federal workers from various agencies in the government, says Politico.

• On a scale of 100, the overall satisfaction was scored at 60.8.
• This is a 3.2 drop from the previous year and the largest drop since the survey began in 2003.
• The drop can be attributed to the two year pay freeze, budget cuts, and ad hoc hiring freezes.

However, not all agencies are ranked the same. On measures such as leadership, pay and work/life balance, the survey separates what are some of the best and worst agencies to work for. The best ranked agencies to work for are:

• The intelligence community.
• NASA.
• The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.
• The Surface Transportation Board.
• Congressional Budget Office.
• Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service.
• Peace Corps.

The worst ranked places to work in the federal government are:

• The Department of Homeland Security.
• Department of Veterans Affairs.
• The National Archives and Records Administration.
• The Broadcasting Board of Governors.
• The Federal Maritime Commission.
• The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative.

Source: Katie Glueck, "Study: Fed Worker Happiness Drops," Politico, December 13, 2012.