500metrics

Current Employment Statistics (CES9000000001) · Government, seasonally adjusted

How many jobs are there in government?

The number of jobs in government was 23,327 thousand in the month ended , down 0.9% from a year earlier (preliminary).

Jobs in government, in thousands, seasonally adjusted, each month

January 1939 to September 2026Seasonally adjusted, as published

Jobs in government, in thousands, seasonally adjusted, each month (January 1939 to September 2026), recessions shaded
Jobs in government, in thousands, seasonally adjusted, each month (September 2016 to September 2026), recessions shaded
Jobs in government, in thousands, seasonally adjusted, each month (September 2024 to September 2026)

Shaded bands are US recessions as the National Bureau of Economic Research dates them: to , to , to , to , to , to , to , to , to , to , to , to , to .

Shaded bands are US recessions as the National Bureau of Economic Research dates them: to .

Jobs in government, in thousands, change from a year earlier, each month (ours)

January 1939 to September 2026Ours, from the published values

Jobs in government, in thousands, change from a year earlier, each month (ours) (January 1939 to September 2026), recessions shaded
Jobs in government, in thousands, change from a year earlier, each month (ours) (September 2016 to September 2026), recessions shaded
Jobs in government, in thousands, change from a year earlier, each month (ours) (September 2024 to September 2026)

Shaded bands are US recessions as the National Bureau of Economic Research dates them: to , to , to , to , to , to , to , to , to , to , to , to , to .

Shaded bands are US recessions as the National Bureau of Economic Research dates them: to .

Each point is one month of the series as the source publishes it, or a change worked out from those values (ours). The US recessions are shaded. Pointing at the chart shows the month and the value.

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Inspect and compare dates

The newest month beside the one before it and the nearest ones a year, five and ten years earlier. The last ten years are in the table under "The numbers behind the chart".

MeasureLatestThe month beforeA year earlierFive years earlierTen years earlier
Month
Jobs in government, in thousands23,327 thousand23,344 thousand23,543 thousand22,102 thousand22,323 thousand
Change over a year−0.9%−0.8%+0.4%+0.8%+1.3%

The table scrolls sideways; the first column stays in place.

Observed .

Right now

The number of jobs in government was 23,327 thousand in September 2026, the lowest since July 2026.

Over a year it is down 0.9% (ours). The source marks this value preliminary.

See every month of the last ten years

ChangeOurs

PeriodThenChange
One month23,344 thousand in −0.1%
Three months23,338 thousand in 0.0%
Twelve months23,543 thousand in −0.9%
Five years22,102 thousand in +5.5%
Ten years22,323 thousand in +4.5%

In historyOurs

The number of jobs in government of 23,327 thousand in was higher than in 1,026 of the 1,052 other months since , the same in 0 and lower in 26.

Highest since : 23,586 thousand in . Lowest since : 3,988 thousand in .

AverageOurs

Average since : 15,159.0 thousand (ours, a plain mean of the 1,053 months).

ComparedOurs

Over a year the number of jobs in government is down 0.9%, which ranks 29 of the 35 rows of the table, where 1 is the largest change.

The table sets the number of jobs in government beside the industries on the jobs by industry page, by the change over a year in each one's newest month.

See every row of the ranking

Openings and turnoverJob Openings and Labor Turnover Survey

In August 2026 the survey counted, for government, 731 thousand job openings, 346 thousand hires, 172 thousand quits and 74 thousand layoffs and discharges.

Over a year the counts are job openings up 1.5%, hires up 17.7%, quits down 6.0% and layoffs and discharges down 16.9% (ours).

Job openings, hires, quits and layoffs in government

August 2016 to August 2026Seasonally adjusted, as publishedNo picture is made of these rows; their numbers are in the table

Job openings, hires, quits and layoffs in government, one row for each measure
  • Job openings731484 to 1,225
  • Hires346224 to 538
  • Quits172154 to 261
  • Layoffs and discharges7455 to 263

Each row is one measure of the second survey for government, in thousands over the last ten years, one month to a point, on one scale, with its newest value and its range printed beside it. Pointing at the chart shows the month and the value.

Observed .

See every measure with its change and record

Understanding the number of jobs in government

Where it stands today

The number of jobs in government was 23,327 thousand in September 2026.

What does the number of jobs in government measure?

Government covers civilian jobs at federal, state and local government, including public schools, colleges and hospitals. Members of the military are not counted.

Read more

The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) counts these jobs each month in a survey of employers, the Current Employment Statistics, and publishes them in the Employment Situation report at the start of the next month. The count is all employees on payrolls, in thousands, seasonally adjusted.

What 500metrics adds: the change over one month, three months, a year and five years, the highest and lowest value since the series begins, how the change over a year ranks among the lines of the jobs by industry page. For this industry it also shows the job openings, hires, quits and layoffs from the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS), a second BLS survey, beside the count of jobs.

The numbers behind the chart

What was the number of jobs in government in each month?The last ten years, 120 months, newest first; the chart and the file have every month since Jan 1939
Jobs in government, in thousands, seasonally adjusted, by month, newest first (Thousands of jobs; the change ours)
MonthValueChange over a year
23,327 thousand−0.9%
23,344 thousand−0.8%
23,300 thousand−1.2%
23,338 thousand−1.1%
23,333 thousand−1.0%
23,331 thousand−1.0%
23,333 thousand−1.0%
23,321 thousand−1.0%
23,329 thousand−1.0%
23,349 thousand−0.8%
23,359 thousand−0.6%
23,390 thousand−0.4%
23,543 thousand+0.4%
23,535 thousand+0.4%
23,585 thousand+0.8%
23,586 thousand+1.1%
23,561 thousand+1.0%
23,568 thousand+1.2%
23,559 thousand+1.1%
23,559 thousand+1.5%
23,557 thousand+1.8%
23,529 thousand+1.9%
23,504 thousand+2.0%
23,486 thousand+2.1%
Show 96 more rows
MonthValueChange over a year
23,449 thousand+2.2%
23,436 thousand+2.3%
23,400 thousand+2.5%
23,339 thousand+2.4%
23,330 thousand+2.7%
23,297 thousand+2.9%
23,296 thousand+3.2%
23,211 thousand+3.0%
23,140 thousand+2.9%
23,091 thousand+3.2%
23,036 thousand+2.9%
22,993 thousand+3.1%
22,948 thousand+2.9%
22,907 thousand+2.7%
22,837 thousand+2.4%
22,792 thousand+2.9%
22,722 thousand+2.7%
22,642 thousand+2.6%
22,580 thousand+2.5%
22,538 thousand+2.3%
22,484 thousand+2.0%
22,365 thousand+1.4%
22,379 thousand+1.5%
22,293 thousand+1.2%
22,297 thousand+0.9%
22,306 thousand+0.8%
22,306 thousand+1.2%
22,142 thousand+0.5%
22,125 thousand+0.9%
22,069 thousand+0.8%
22,033 thousand+0.9%
22,032 thousand+1.3%
22,049 thousand+1.4%
22,062 thousand+1.8%
22,046 thousand+1.7%
22,027 thousand+1.0%
22,102 thousand+0.8%
22,136 thousand+0.6%
22,039 thousand+2.4%
22,031 thousand+2.9%
21,929 thousand+2.5%
21,893 thousand−0.1%
21,844 thousand−4.3%
21,754 thousand−4.8%
21,741 thousand−4.6%
21,678 thousand−4.6%
21,683 thousand−4.5%
21,805 thousand−3.8%
21,929 thousand−3.2%
22,000 thousand−2.8%
21,514 thousand−4.7%
21,412 thousand−5.3%
21,393 thousand−5.2%
21,909 thousand−3.1%
22,827 thousand+1.1%
22,857 thousand+1.5%
22,781 thousand+1.2%
22,726 thousand+1.0%
22,709 thousand+1.1%
22,670 thousand+0.8%
22,653 thousand+0.8%
22,625 thousand+0.7%
22,572 thousand+0.6%
22,604 thousand+0.5%
22,562 thousand+0.5%
22,619 thousand+0.8%
22,569 thousand+0.6%
22,525 thousand+0.5%
22,508 thousand+0.6%
22,511 thousand+0.6%
22,473 thousand+0.4%
22,479 thousand+0.5%
22,474 thousand+0.6%
22,468 thousand+0.7%
22,436 thousand+0.3%
22,482 thousand+0.5%
22,449 thousand+0.5%
22,444 thousand+0.5%
22,427 thousand+0.4%
22,419 thousand+0.4%
22,374 thousand+0.3%
22,384 thousand+0.4%
22,379 thousand+0.5%
22,361 thousand+0.3%
22,333 thousand0.0%
22,310 thousand+0.1%
22,374 thousand+0.4%
22,360 thousand+0.8%
22,347 thousand+0.7%
22,335 thousand+0.7%
22,329 thousand+0.7%
22,326 thousand+0.8%
22,316 thousand+0.9%
22,304 thousand+0.9%
22,277 thousand+0.9%
22,295 thousand+1.1%
How does it compare with the industries on the jobs by industry page?Ranked by the change over a year
Jobs in government, in thousands beside the industries on the jobs by industry page, newest month of each, by the change over a year (ours); equal changes share a rank
SeriesMonthValueChange over a yearRank
Health care and social assistance23,959 thousand+2.2%1
Private education and health28,005 thousand+1.9%2
Utilities612 thousand+1.7%3
Construction8,364 thousand+1.3%4
Durable goods7,898 thousand+1.1%5
Professional, scientific, technical10,844 thousand+0.8%6
Accommodation and food services14,310 thousand+0.7%7
Goods-producing21,623 thousand+0.7%7
Other services6,039 thousand+0.6%9
Professional and business services22,482 thousand+0.6%9
Administrative, support, waste9,019 thousand+0.5%11
Private service-providing114,094 thousand+0.5%11
Total private135,717 thousand+0.5%11
Leisure and hospitality16,969 thousand+0.4%14
Wholesale trade6,078 thousand+0.4%14
Local government15,173 thousand+0.3%16
Manufacturing12,652 thousand+0.3%16
Mining and logging607 thousand+0.3%16
Service-providing137,421 thousand+0.3%16
Total nonfarm159,044 thousand+0.3%16
Retail trade15,480 thousand+0.2%21
Trade, transportation, utilities28,778 thousand+0.2%21
Mining, oil and gas extraction567 thousand+0.1%23
Private education4,046 thousand−0.1%24
Transportation and warehousing6,609 thousand−0.1%24
Management of companies2,620 thousand−0.3%26
State government5,472 thousand−0.5%27
Real estate, rental, leasing2,438 thousand−0.6%28
Government23,327 thousand−0.9%29
Nondurable goods4,754 thousand−0.9%29
Financial activities9,082 thousand−1.2%31
Finance and insurance6,645 thousand−1.4%32
Arts, entertainment, recreation2,659 thousand−1.6%33
Information2,739 thousand−4.2%34
Federal government2,682 thousand−8.0%35

The table scrolls sideways; the first column stays in place.

How many job openings, hires, quits and layoffs were there in government?Newest month of each measure
Job openings, hires, quits and layoffs in government, newest month of each measure, seasonally adjusted (Thousands (job openings at the end of the month; hires, quits and layoffs during it); rates in percent; the change over a year ours)
MeasureMonthCountRateChange over a yearWhere the count stands
Job openings731 thousand3.0%+1.5%the lowest since March 2026
Hires346 thousand1.5%+17.7%the highest since January 2025
Quits172 thousand0.7%−6.0%the lowest since March 2024
Layoffs and discharges74 thousand0.3%−16.9%the lowest since April 2026

The table scrolls sideways; the first column stays in place.

What do these figures leave out, and how are they cited?Limits, dates and how to cite

What this number cannot tell you

  • BLS counts jobs, not people: a person with two jobs on two payrolls is counted twice. Farm jobs, the self-employed, unpaid family workers, private household workers and members of the military are not counted.
  • The count comes from a survey of employers, so each month's value carries sampling error. BLS revises each month twice in the two months after it is first published, and each February it benchmarks the series to a full count of jobs from unemployment insurance tax records and revises earlier values, so past values on this page can change.
  • BLS publishes this series from 1939.
  • The job openings, hires, quits and layoffs come from JOLTS, a separate survey of employers that BLS holds from December 2000 and publishes about a month after the payroll counts, so its newest month can be an earlier month than the count of jobs.
  • The changes, the ranks and the highest and lowest values are ours, worked out from the values BLS publishes; a change is in percent.

Observed . Checked .

Observed .

How to cite this

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Employment Statistics, Government, seasonally adjusted, through September 2026, with U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, through August 2026. Compiled by 500metrics, "How many jobs are there in government?", https://500metrics.com/jobs-by-industry/government.

Can the data be downloaded?jobs-by-industry-government.csv

Download the full history as CSV: 1,053 rows, to , 18,818 bytes.

Our text and compilation: CC BY 4.0.

Recession dates from the National Bureau of Economic Research.

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