Reasonable Cause for Jealousy

When you’ve got a plane ticket in your fist, better hope that you’re working for the state.  When your tonsils need to come out, working for the state beats out being a local government worker.  When you’re leaving the HR department and you want to be exiting with the knowledge that your blood thinners will be paid for, better hope that you’re working for the state.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released a report that might help recruiters know why job candidates might be particularly hot on securing State government jobs.  The BLS compares the benefits of working at the state and local levels of the government.

The disparity between the benefits for state and local government employees is particularly evident when researchers looked into payment for holidays and vacations.  Most state employees get to look forward to their days off, knowing that their paycheck will still look the same.  Local workers are rarely so lucky.  Differences in access rates between State and local government employees were especially notable for paid holidays and paid vacations—90 percent and 86 percent of State government workers, respectively, compared with 60 percent and 51 percent of local government workers, respectively.

Also notable is the glaring discrepancy between government workers’ access to medical plans.  In March 2010, among State government workers, 94 percent had access to medical plans, compared with 86 percent of local government workers.