(CNSNews.com) - The number of people working for the federal government declined by 13,000 in June, dropping from 2,866,000 in May to 2,853,000, according to the employment report released today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Overall government employment in the United States declined by only 9,000 from May to June as local governments added workers.
In May, local governments in the United States employed 14,104,000. In June, they employed 14,109,000, an increase of 5,000.
State government, meanwhile, saw a minor decline in employment during the month. In May, there were 5,254,000 employed by state governments, according to BLS. In June, that dropped by 1,000 to 5,253,000.
Federal employment peaked at 3,435,000 in May 1990, which was a Census year. In May 2000, another Census year, it climbed back up to 3,244,000. In May 2010, yet another Census year, it hit 3,416,000. In August 2020, yet another Census year, it climbed back up to 3,156,000.
By January 2021, federal employment had dropped down to 2,886,000—270,000 less than it had been the previous August.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics notes that private-sector employment in the United States has increased since the start of the COVID-29 pandemic in February 2020, while overall government employment is still down from that date. “Private-sector employment has recovered the net job losses due to the pandemic and is 140,000 higher than in February 2020, while government employment is 664,000 lower,” said BLS.
In February 2020, there were 22,879,000 working for government in the United States—compared to the 22,215,000 working for government in June 2022.