In honor of Public Service Recognition Week, celebrated May 3-9, we wanted to take a look at how the government workforce is reshaping in light of policy shifts and rapid technology introduction.
2025 saw over 320,000 employees cut from the federal workforce. In 2026, the workforce is rebalancing with the use of technology and the introduction of new roles within government. Ongoing shifts in the federal workforce will be tracked by the Federal Workforce Data website, a newly launched platform aimed at improving transparency around hiring, attrition, and workplace trends in the federal government.
Bringing in the Tech Force
The government has long struggled to attract and retain young talent, and the problem is getting worse. According to Max Stier, president and CEO of the nonpartisan Partnership for Public Service, the percentage of federal workforce employees under the age of 30 declined from about 8.9% to 7.9% in 2025.
This lack of newly trained technology expertise has had an impact on the pace of innovation in government, and the government has lagged the private sector in the manpower and knowledge to push forward technology innovations.
The latest effort to increase the technology workforce in government, Tech Force, aims to offer short-term assignments to both early-career and experienced talent. Workers will sign on for a two-year commitment of serving within a government agency to support technology projects. After those two years, they could potentially continue in government or transition to a role with a private sector company. The government has partnered with a number of major technology employers, including Amazon, Google, and IBM, to both recruit tech talent for Tech Force and help place employees after their two years of government work end. The program looks to initially hire roughly 1,000 individuals from private-sector roles, ranging from early-career data scientists and engineers to engineering managers.
Expanding Paid Internships
In another effort to bring in younger talent, OPM is making it easier for federal agencies to pay and offer jobs to their interns who are still in college. This effort began in 2019, when Congress included provisions in the 2019 and 2020 National Defense Authorization acts that allowed agencies to offer interns temporary appointments and the option to convert to permanent roles once they graduated.
Newly finalized OPM regulations allow college students attending school at least part-time to work for a federal agency while finishing their studies, provided that they are paid at a GS-11 level or below. The rule also allows a “break in program” to permit students to work full time, such as during a summer internship, pause their agency work to study full time, or simply take a short break from both (pending agency approval of these breaks).
Veterans as a Hiring Pool
Providing public sector jobs for veterans is a great way to ensure military members have a productive career after their period of service. The public sector can be a “soft landing” for veterans, as there can be a more direct correlation between their military experience and the work they’re transferring into. Public sector hiring managers understand that the military trains individuals and teams to develop skills like strategic thinking, operational planning, threat awareness, crisis management, and decision-making under pressure, and that veterans can translate these skills into much-needed positions in technology.
While AI is being used to automate a lot of white-collar functions like assistant work, coding, or content creation, these roles are not traditionally a fit for new veterans, as they require additional training or schooling. Where AI cannot replace work is hands-on tasks like those needed in critical infrastructure, public safety, and disaster management—meaning roles like engineers, technicians, and inspectors can be a great fit for veterans. This makes veteran experience AI-resistant.
To stay on top of public sector workforce trends, check out these resources from GovWhitePapers and GovEvents:
- Defense Workforce (white paper) – This September 2025 report reviews how the Department of Defense is addressing challenges in recruiting and retaining Federal Wage System (FWS) employees—the skilled blue-collar workforce that keeps bases, depots, and shipyards running.
- Agile Recruiting in National Security (white paper) – National security hiring is uniquely unforgiving. Labor categories are rigid, award timelines wobble with bid protests and funding cycles, and a single stalled polygraph can jeopardize delivery. Traditional, linear requisition cycles can’t keep pace. An agile recruiting model helps GovCon teams reduce time-to-accept, protect compliance, and maintain proposal agility when the mission changes.
- Leadership Framework for an Agile Government (white paper) – This report presents a comprehensive framework for cultivating leadership that enables agility, innovation, and adaptability in public sector organizations. Drawing from research and case studies across U.S. city governments, it identifies the leadership traits and practices essential for navigating rapid technological change.
- GenAI and the Future of Government Work (white paper) – This report explores how generative AI is reshaping the public sector workforce, from accelerating routine tasks to transforming how agencies deliver services. It examines the balance between innovation and responsibility, emphasizing the need for governance, transparency, and upskilling to ensure ethical and effective AI use.
- Who Is Government? A Conversation with Author Casey Cep (On-demand; Washington, DC) – Every day, federal employees work to make our country safer, stronger, healthier, and more prosperous. Last year, celebrated writers profiled some of these exemplary civil servants for The Washington Post’s “Who Is Government?” series. The series, which has since been turned into a book, showcased the critical ways these individuals deliver for the public. Join a conversation with award-winning author Casey Cep, one of the book’s contributors, to discuss the importance of civil servants—and what our nation may lose without them.
- Simplifying the Work (May 21, 2026; webcast) – Governments are concentrating on improving internal operations in order to deliver services more efficiently and cost-effectively. In plain terms, agencies want to simplify the work employees do and the steps constituents must take to receive services.
- SHRM26 (June 16-19, 2026; Orlando, FL) – This event is designed to keep HR professionals ahead of critical trends, including AI, compliance evolution, and culture transformation.
- PSHRA 2026 (September 28-30, 2026; Portland, OR) – This educational and networking event focuses exclusively on public sector human resources. The conference addresses the unique challenges facing government HR departments, from regulatory compliance and benefits administration to workforce planning and employee engagement.
- Gartner HR Symposium/Xpo 2026 (October 26-28, 2026; Lake Buena Vista, FL) – At this gathering, CHROs and HR executives tackle priorities on the new human-AI workforce, foundations for performance, and navigating shifting skills requirements.
Search GovWhitePapers and GovEvents to find even more insights about the public sector workforce.
