1 of 3

Write now Article Tools

As of April of 2009, the unemployment rate is officially sitting around 8.5%. Some would argue that the methodology used by the Department of Labor to calculate those statistics is flawed and the true unemployment rate is much closer to 13%. Whatever the case somewhere between 1 and 8 and 1 and 12 American workers are without jobs. Others are forced to take part-time work or two-part time jobs instead of getting one full-time job.

We will probably see some sort of economic turnaround during the second half of 2009, but that doesn't give much comfort to those who are currently unemployed. If you are currently without a job, there's one employer that's hiring all around the country that you might not have considered, and it really shouldn't be much of a surprise at all. It's the Federal Government.

As the size of the government grows, there will be a need for more federal employees. There are also going to be a lot more federal employees that retire in the near future as the baby-boomer generation retires. Many of these employees were first hired back in the Great Society Initiatives that President Johnson started back in the 1960's. Since federal jobs can often be very lucrative, many of the people that started working for the federal government never quit their jobs. Since many of these people will be retiring in the next decade, there will be some great jobs to be found.

Currently the federal government has a cap of 2 million non-military civilian federal employees. This was placed hen the United States had a population of 200 million. Currently to get around that limit, the Federal Government has been using a large number of contractors to do the work that it can't hire the people to do. It's anyone's guess as to whether or not that limit will be lifted in the near future, but if it is, there will likely be a surge in federal hiring.

If you've applied for work in the private sector before, you're going to find that navigating your way through the hiring process with the Federal Government is extremely confusing. If there's anyone you know, whether it be a friend, a family member or a member of your local church that's already in the local system, it would be well worth your time to sit down with them and ask them how the process works.

To look at federal job postings, checkout http://www.usajobs.gov/

If you've applied for work in the private sector before, you're going to find that navigating your way through the hiring process with the Federal Government is extremely confusing. If there's anyone you know, whether it be a friend, a family member or a member of your local church that's already in the local system, it would be well worth your time to sit down with them and ask them how the process works.

Learn more about this author, JQ Adams.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.

Add your voice

Know something about How to apply for a federal job?
We want to hear your view. Write now!