FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 14, 2005

NEW RANKINGS SHOW GOVERNMENT IS A BETTER PLACE TO WORK TODAY

Employee Satisfaction is Up in 3 Out of 4 Government Agencies

Washington, D.C. – The best places to work in the federal government are the Office of Management and Budget, the National Science Foundation, and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, respectively, according to new rankings released today by the Partnership for Public Service and the Institute for the Study of Public Policy Implementation (ISPPI) at American University's School of Public Affairs. And employees at 3 out of 4 federal agencies are more committed and engaged in their work today than just two years ago.

Best Places to Work is the most comprehensive ranking of federal government organizations, drawing on the U.S. Office of Personnel Management's Federal Human Capital Survey of 150,000 executive branch employees. The rankings are designed to offer job-seekers unprecedented insight into the best opportunities for public service and to provide managers and government leaders a road map for improving employee engagement and commitment.

Best Places to Work includes a ranking of 30 agencies and 220 subcomponents on overall employee engagement, as well as in ten work environment categories. The rankings also highlight trends among demographic groups, including workers under 40 versus workers over 40, men versus women, and African American, Hispanic, and Asian employees. Best Places to Work was made possible with technical assistance from Sirota Survey Intelligence, specialists in attitude research.

To view all of the rankings and analyses of the results, visit www.bestplacestowork.org. This year, for the first time, the rankings will also be featured on the US News & World Report website.

According to federal employees, the top 10 federal agencies to work for are:

1. Office of Management and Budget
2. National Science Foundation
3. Nuclear Regulatory Commission
4. Government Accountability Office
5. Securities and Exchange Commission
6. NASA
7. General Services Administration
8. Environmental Protection Agency
9. Department of Energy
10. Department of State

“I am proud that OMB is ranked as the best place to work in the federal government,” said Clay Johnson III, Deputy Director for Management at the Office of Management and Budget. “Engaging employees and holding managers accountable for results is critical to our success and we look forward to bringing these successful strategies to more federal agencies.”

Smaller federal agencies across the nation also received accolades from their employees. The top 10 small federal agencies and subcomponents are:

1. Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service
2. EPA's San Francisco Field Office
3. EPA's Seattle Field Office
4. U.S. Merit Systems Protection Board
5. NASA's Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center in Houston
6. Treasury Department's Office of the Comptroller of the Currency
7. NASA's John F. Kennedy Space Center in Orlando
8. Department of Justice's Antitrust Division
9. Department of Justice's Executive Office of the U.S. Attorney
10. EPA's Boston Field Office

 

Government vs. the Private Sector

The rankings also reveal that the government is becoming more competitive with the private sector when it comes to employee satisfaction. In this year's rankings, one out of three federal agencies had higher employee engagement scores than the private sector average, while in the first Best Places to Work rankings (2003), only one in eight did.

In addition, 20 percent of federal agencies beat Sirota Survey Intelligence's benchmark score for the top performing private companies across a wide array of industries, compared to only 3 percent in 2003.

”These rankings show us that the government has much to be proud of,” said Max Stier, president and CEO of the Partnership for Public Service. “Government is a better place to work today than just two years ago. Three out of four government agencies improved their employee engagement scores since 2003. And the government has a leg up on the private sector when it comes to offering employees a meaningful work environment and offering employees a good work/life balance.”

When compared with top performing private companies, federal employees are also more likely than their private sector counterparts to believe the people they work with cooperate to get things done, that they have opportunities for growth, and they have enough information to do their jobs well.

However, challenges remain for the public sector. According to this new research, government employees are less likely than private sector employees to believe that complaints are resolved fairly in their workplace, to be satisfied with the recognition they receive for good work, and to feel confident in their immediate supervisors.

“One of the biggest lessons we can take from these rankings is that in the federal government, good leaders are the linchpin of a successful work environment,” said Bob Tobias, director of American University's ISPPI. “Good managers provide open lines of communication with employees, offer honest feedback in an ongoing fashion, clearly outline performance goals and rewards, and empower employees to make key decisions. Government's not out of the woods on this issue yet, but progress is being made, as out of the ten workplace categories we measured, ‘Effective Leadership' had the second highest rate of increase since 2003.”

Demographic Rankings

Across the government, employee satisfaction and engagement is largely equal along race, age, and gender lines. Men and women, as well as workers under and over 40, have the same employee engagement score (61). Similarly, only three points separate the four largest racial and ethnic groups measured: Hispanics (63), Asians (63), Whites (61), and African Americans (60).

The following are the best places to work based on the feedback of these demographic groups:

Best Places to Work in the Federal Government, According to African Americans:

1. Nuclear Regulatory Commission
2. National Science Foundation
3. General Services Administration

Best Places to Work in the Federal Government, According to Hispanic Americans:

1. National Science Foundation
2. Securities and Exchange Commission
3. Office of Management and Budget

Best Places to Work in the Federal Government, According to Asian Americans:

1. Office of Management and Budget
2. National Science Foundation
3. Agency for International Development

Best Places to Work in the Federal Government, According to Workers Under 40:

1. Nuclear Regulatory Commission
2. Securities and Exchange Commission
3. Office of Management and Budget

Best Places to Work in the Federal Government, According to Workers Over 40:

1. Office of Management and Budget
2. National Science Foundation
3. Nuclear Regulatory Commission

Best Places to Work in the Federal Government, According to Women:

1. Office of Management and Budget
2. Nuclear Regulatory Commission
3. NASA

Best Places to Work in the Federal Government, According to Men:

1. National Science Foundation
2. Office of Management and Budget
3. Securities and Exchange Commission

For agency profiles and statistics, analyses of the results, additional information about the private sector comparisons, and details on the Best Places to Work methodology, visit the Best Places to Work website.

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© 2007-2012 Partnership for Public Service