Federal job watch: So far more of a ‘He-cession’ than a ‘She-cession’
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President Donald Trump’s administration has been reshaping the federal government since he assumed office in January. Among the dramatic changes: layoffs of thousands of federal workers.
National data released last week by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) indicate there were around 26,000 fewer federal jobs in mid-April compared to the start of the Trump administration.
The jobs numbers include very little demographic data, but they do show job gains and losses by gender, lagging one month prior to the overall numbers. That data reveals a surprise: As of mid-March, federal job losses were much more notable among men than women. Our analysis shows a net loss of 15,000 federal jobs for men, compared to just 2,000 for women.
Scroll down to see the number of federal government jobs and losses or gains in your metro area
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The number of individuals who lost federal jobs exceeds these net losses; even during the last few months some parts of the federal government have continued to hire people. The BLS data provides a snapshot of the total number of jobs each month rather than a precise accounting of job separations and additions.
In fact, the four major categories of federal government employment included in the data show some areas of job growth. From January to March women gained jobs in two categories: the Department of Defense (+3,500) and federal hospitals (+3,400).
Men gained in only one category, adding 600 jobs in federal hospitals. We asked the BLS about these trends and they noted that the most recent month’s data in their releases are considered preliminary and subject to revision.
Note that Department of Defense positions in BLS jobs data include only civilian positions. According to BLS definitions, “Military personnel on active duty are excluded. Employees of the Central Intelligence Agency, the National Security Agency, the National Imagery and Mapping Agency, and the Defense Intelligence Agency also are excluded.”
Finally, it is important to note that some Department of Defense civilian positions and Veteran’s Administration hospital positions were among those exempted from the hiring freezes rolled out by the Trump administration starting in January.
And around 2 out of 3 federal hospital employees are women, so recent hiring patterns are somewhat in line with existing gender differences. The same cannot be said for Department of Defense positions.
How are the recent cuts affecting specific metro areas?
The federal government employs about 3 million Americans, making it the nation’s single largest employer. While the Washington, D.C. metro area has the highest per capita concentration of federal workers, close to 90 percent are based elsewhere, making up an important part of the workforce throughout the nation.
The newly released monthly metropolitan jobs report for March again showed that, at least so far, federal job losses in most metro areas are minimal. Note that the reference day for these monthly reports is the 12th day of the month — so layoffs occurring after March 12 will be picked up in next month’s report, scheduled for May 28, 2025.
The data show that the combination of layoffs and hiring in the Minneapolis-St. Paul led to no net loss of federal jobs from January to March.
Other findings from the most recent metropolitan jobs report, specifically focused on the nation’s 100 largest metropolitan areas, include:
Washington, D.C., lost 7,500 federal jobs from January to March, numerically the largest loss of any major metropolitan area. That’s not quite half of the total number of federal jobs lost, while the metro area only employs around a tenth of the federal workforce.
The next highest losses were experienced by the Baltimore metro area (1,100 jobs lost), the Virginia Beach metro (-900) and the New York metro area (-800).
Eleven of the 100 largest metro areas gained federal workers. Dallas added the most with 400 new federal jobs.
Proportionally the biggest losses of federal jobs Jan. to Mar. were in the metropolitan areas centered around Portland, Maine (-3.9 percent), Allentown, Pennsylvania (-3.8 percent) and Baton Rouge, Louisiana (-3.2 percent).
Thirty-four of the nation’s 100 largest metros broke even, on net neither gaining nor losing federal jobs according to the BLS data.
Technical notes: According to Bureau of Labor Statistics’ definitions, government employment covers only civilian employees; military personnel are excluded. Employees of the Central Intelligence Agency, the National Security Agency, the National Imagery and Mapping Agency, and the Defense Intelligence Agency are also excluded. Employees on paid leave or receiving ongoing severance pay are counted as employed in the establishment survey.