A good government group has highlighted the changing nature of federal government work, with the share of professional and administrative employees increasing by about 11 percentage points to just under 70 percent since 1998, with offsetting decreases mainly in clerical, blue-collar and technical jobs.
“The shift from clerical to more professional and knowledge-based work in government means that federal workers possess bachelor’s and advanced degrees at a higher rate than the private sector–47 percent to 35.2 percent,” a fact sheet from the Partnership for Public Service says.
Less than 1 percent of federal employees do not have at least a high school diploma or equivalent, compared with 6.3 percent in the overall workforce, it says. Other notable differences include that the federal workforce: is older, with 45 percent age 50 or older compared with 33 percent; has a lower percentage of women, 43 percent versus 47 percent; and a higher percentage of veterans, 33 percent versus 7 percent.
A separate recent report from OPM showed that salaries are highest on average in professional jobs, about $109,000, followed by administrative, $96,000; technical, $53,000; and clerical, $42,000. The average for other white collar positions was $65,000 and for blue-collar, $56,000.
The average federal salary is now just above $85,000.
