Government plays a fundamental role in the prosperity of nations, states, and municipalities, handling a wide range of essential functions, from establishing and enforcing law and stewarding taxes to regulating the economy, maintaining roads, bridges, and infrastructure, and much more. In the U.S. alone, over 4 million government employees work to carry out these duties and serve the needs of citizens. The effectiveness of this vast organization hinges on its workforce, underscoring the significance of effective human resources management at both federal and state levels to ensure operational efficiency and strategic success.
However, in recent years, government organizations nationwide have been facing significant staffing shortages, which impact their ability to serve citizens effectively. Studies indicate that these challenges affect public safety, public health, and other critical areas of government work.
Join us as we explore the staffing challenges facing government Human Resources departments, identify the underlying reasons, and review the most effective solutions.
Staffing Shortages in Local Government
According to the United States Census Bureau, most local government organizations are serving a growing population. From 2022 to 2023, 60% of counties experienced growth, a significant uptick from the 52% reported the previous year. Amid these demographic changes and a rise in citizen expectations, local government leaders are facing more demands than ever.
Yet, government staffing levels are not keeping up with these new needs. State government employment has decreased by 200,000 jobs, a 3.8% decline since February 2020, while local governments have seen a reduction of 305,000 jobs, a 2.1% decline. This means organizations are managing greater responsibilities with shrinking resources. As a result, the heavy workloads and unrealistic expectations of existing staff are negatively impact job satisfaction, often leading to burnout.
The causes of staffing challenges in local government organizations are varied. Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics highlight several common themes, including the lasting impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, a recent wave of retirements, the phenomenon dubbed The Great Resignation, imbalances in supply and demand, as well as the absence of strategic talent development and succession planning in government organizations.
Long Covid in the Workplace
During the COVID-19 pandemic, staffing levels declined significantly across both public and private organizations. However, local government employers were disproportionately affected by budget cuts, furloughs, and service stoppages for health-related safety reasons. While employment rates in the private sector have recovered, with 2023 employment exceeding pre-pandemic figures by more than 3 million (2.5%), the public sector has lagged behind.
Many government organizations remain heavily understaffed, battling vacancies in critical positions. Nearly half of local and state organizations are now operating with subpar staffing, struggling to meet the demands of a growing population and increased citizen expectations.
The Silver Tsunami
A wave of retirements dubbed the Silver Tsunami exacerbates the challenges many government organizations face. As the baby boomer generation approaches retirement age, filling the roles they vacate is becoming increasingly difficult. However, only 30% of agencies are prepared to handle these retirements with robust succession plans, leading to potential disruptions to continuity in key roles.
The Great Resignation
Retirement-age employees are not the only ones leaving. The Great Resignation also continues to wreak havoc in local government. The rate of voluntary quits that spiked during the pandemic stabilized in late 2020, but increased again in 2021, when the monthly rate of separations more than doubled between April and August. According to a 2024 Job Openings and Labor Turnover Summary published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, quits continue to be on the rise in the public sector, increasing by 32,000 in April alone.
The reasons are varied, but exit interviews show that non-competitive compensation is at the top of the list (53%), followed by retirement (33%) and opportunities for advancement with a different public sector employer (32%). Leaders also cite dissatisfaction with their supervisor (28%), lack of internal advancement (28%), and advancement with a private employer (22%) among the reasons for their departure.
Imbalances in Supply and Demand
While all departments are affected by these staffing shortages to some extent, finding qualified candidates is particularly challenging for some positions. The majority of organizations struggle to fill openings in policing (78%) and corrections or jail facilities (77%), while many face difficulties in hiring physicians (76%), nurses (75%), and engineers (73%). These roles are vital for community well-being, underscoring the impact of these vacancies on citizens.
Organizations are responding with various strategies, from reopening recruitment efforts (51%) and restructuring services to match available staffing (10%) to removing degree requirements (29%), hiring candidates who fall below the minimum qualifications (20%), and even hiring in excess of current needs when candidates are available (6%). But despite these efforts, the underlying issues remain unresolved, compromising the quality of government services.
Absence of Strategic Talent Development
As hiring difficulties persist, investing in strategic succession planning and in-house talent development can help ensure continuity in important government roles. Promoting employees from within not only helps fill key positions but also provides existing government staff with advancement opportunities, contributing to employee engagement and retention.
However, not all organizations have a robust succession and talent development plan in place. While most leaders value professional development (70%) and leadership development (68%), the lack of clear delineation between various types of training makes it difficult to measure the effectiveness of these initiatives. Many agencies claim to offer “in-house training,” but the meaning of this ambiguous term can range from formal training programs to the mere expectation of on-the-job learning.
While leadership may deem training opportunities to be satisfactory, employees within the same organizations often report a lack of access to professional development. MissionSquare’s report sheds some light on the reasons behind these discrepancies. Merely 39% of organizations offer employee development specifically along career paths, and only 44% facilitate cross-training opportunities. Given these conditions, it’s no surprise that many departing employees cite a lack of professional development as the primary reason for leaving.
Public Sector Barriers to Addressing Staffing Shortages
Resolving staffing shortages in the public sector can be challenging, as many organizations face additional barriers that limit their ability to address issues effectively.
Primary among them are complicated and lengthy hiring procedures, often referred to as the proverbial government bureaucracy, that hinder an organization’s ability to address workforce requirements swiftly and efficiently and compete for high-caliber talent. Slow hiring, complex applications, and a lack of communication during the process can deter promising candidates before they even complete their applications. Slow response times can cost organizations top-tier candidates hired by faster-moving firms.
Local government agencies also operate with limited resources, affecting their ability to invest in competitive salaries, employee training, and technology upgrades. Organizations often lose promising candidates and existing employees to inadequate compensation and a lack of career development opportunities. A Queens University study revealed similar circumstances in Canada, where for 35% of government organizations, budgetary constraints are a major obstacle to strategic succession planning and talent development, while 38% cited a lack of time as a significant hindrance.
Local government organizations are also vulnerable to political shifts, requiring agility and adaptability to align with the evolving priorities of new leaders. Continuous changes in strategic direction make it challenging to develop a solid, long-term succession plan. Additionally, union dynamics add another layer of complexity to staffing efforts. Successfully navigating these challenges requires collaborative negotiation and management of collective bargaining agreements, addressing labor disputes, and striving for fair and equitable treatment of all employees, both unionized and non-unionized.
Heavy workloads within the organization also impact employee retention. With a dwindling workforce and increased citizen expectations, local governments often face employee burnout and reduced morale, contributing to high attrition rates.
Building a Resilient Workforce
Streamlined Recruitment
Optimizing the recruiting process by addressing negative public perceptions, streamlining outdated processes, and investing in talent management technology can all help organizations address staffing shortages.
Agencies are not always seen as employers of choice by candidates, in part due to the public perception that government jobs are underpaid relative to those in the private sector. While this isn’t always the case, emphasizing the unique benefits of working in the public sector can attract candidates who are motivated by more than just salary. For example, local governments are increasingly becoming employers of choice for individuals who value sustainability and environmental stewardship. Public organizations also encourage employees to contribute to projects and initiatives that address societal challenges, positioning themselves as workplaces where one can have a meaningful impact on their community.
Most organizations also need to streamline bureaucratic processes to reduce hiring delays. Government employers often compete with the private sector for candidates and lose top talent to private firms because they can’t match their speed and efficiency during the recruiting process. Ensuring that the application and candidate review process is as fast and efficient as possible allows agencies to compete for top talent.
By leveraging technology to automate routine HR workflows, public sector organizations can greatly improve the speed and efficiency of their hiring process. Modern talent management software supports smart recruiting and integrates job posting, application selection, interview scheduling, and candidate acceptance into one streamlined platform. Robust talent management solutions also help standardize hiring procedures across different organizational areas, provide detailed dashboards for talent pool insights, and even automate recruitment and candidate engagement to expedite hiring.
Features such as offer and contract builders help overcome delays, ensuring that good candidates are not lost to other organizations. Tools such as candidate scoring and filtering simplify hiring by identifying and ranking the most qualified candidates. Additionally, HR software with a robust employee onboarding module can even accelerate new hire productivity through a fast and easy first-day experience.
Succession Planning
Succession planning is another solution local governments can adopt to support their staffing efforts. When organizations face increased attrition and hiring challenges, having prepared internal candidates ready to take key positions is crucial to ensuring continuity. Filling vacancies with in-house talent well-equipped for the role offers much-needed stability and allows organizations to bypass the lengthy learning curve often necessary for new hires.
Unlike replacement hiring, which reactively addresses immediate staffing needs without considering long-term goals, succession planning is a proactive, forward-looking approach. It builds strong leadership pipelines that support critical roles through continuous professional development and keeps organizations resilient.
While spending time, energy, and money on a strategic succession plan may seem like a luxury to many local government organizations, the substantial costs of not having one are worth considering. From severance packages and recruiting expenses to unplanned board meetings with unexpected travel costs and premiums paid for unplanned external hires, a reactive approach can cost organizations significantly and result in missed opportunities for organizational growth.
While succession planning may seem daunting at first, modern talent management software can greatly simplify the process by providing organizations with a central hub for managing their staff. Leading solutions offer valuable insights into workforce health through granular reporting and facilitate data-driven decisions. By leveraging these tools, local government organizations can make more informed decisions and ensure they are well-prepared for change.
Employee Retention Initiatives
Implementing initiatives designed to engage existing staff and reduce attrition is equally important in addressing staffing shortages. For example, employee recognition is an easy yet highly effective strategy for improving retention in local government agencies. Simple gestures of appreciation can have a profound impact on morale and loyalty. Praise shared privately as well as publicly can foster a culture of appreciation and motivate employees to stay engaged and committed.
Employee satisfaction is also significantly influenced by the opportunities available for training and professional development. Providing staff with meaningful opportunities for growth can enhance overall job satisfaction and career fulfillment.
Modern talent management software supports these efforts by engaging employees from the start of their journey with the organization with a personalized onboarding experience and empowering HR managers with robust tools for fostering engagement and measuring results throughout the employee relationship.
Leading solutions offer a wide range of tools, from centralized repositories of important documents, policies, and procedures to communication tools and feedback surveys that promote transparency and open conversations between employees and management. Leading platforms also offer self-service portals, allowing staff to access their personal information, track their performance, or request time off in one place. They also facilitate real-time updates, ensuring that employees are immediately informed of important news and changes at the organization.
In recent years, the government sector has experienced substantial staffing shortages, impacting state and municipal agencies nationwide. Organizations often operate understaffed and are ill-equipped to handle the increased workload of a growing population. The unique challenges faced by government organizations, from limited budgets and political shifts to the complexity of union dynamics, compound the problem.
However, local government leaders have various tools at their disposal to successfully address these challenges by streamlining the hiring process, creating a succession plan for key roles, and investing in employee engagement and retention initiatives. Modern talent management software supports these efforts by providing tools for efficient recruitment, onboarding, and ongoing employee engagement, fostering a more resilient workforce.