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Recent trends in quits and retirements in the federal workforce

The Partnership for Public Service recently examined attrition in the federal workforce over a five year period, from fiscal 2019 to fiscal 2023. The work builds on our Fed Figures report on previous attrition trends, as well as an analysis of additional data from fiscal 2019 through fiscal 2021.  

Focusing on voluntary attrition from the federal civil service—the number of quits and retirements in a fiscal year divided by the number of employees at the end of the previous fiscal year—we found that attrition declined in fiscal 2023, but that women and young people voluntarily left the government at higher than average rates, shedding light on where agencies might focus their recruitment and retention efforts.   

Five-year attrition trend (fiscal 2019 to fiscal 2023) 

Over the past five fiscal years, attrition peaked in fiscal 2022 at 7.6%. That year, nearly 150,000 federal employees left the government, with 70,000 departing due to retirement and 77,000 quitting their position.  

This increase in departures may have occurred because more employees became eligible to retire, or due to certain economic factors or pushes to return to in-office work as the COVID-19 pandemic waned.  ou

In fiscal 2023, the federal workforce rebounded, posting a 5.9% attrition rate and 115,900 departures, the lowest since fiscal 2020 and a potential sign that fears of a “Great Resignation” in government were overblown. In addition, it should be noted that the federal workforce has continued to grow over the past five fiscal years, regardless of how many employees left government.  

The fiscal 2024 attrition rate will provide important insight into whether the drop in fiscal 2023 was a reversal of the years-long trend or simply an aberration. 

Demographic data

Attrition by sex 

In both fiscal 2022 and fiscal 2023, the female attrition rate outpaced the government-wide attrition rate, while the male attrition rate was slightly lower.  

Women accounted for 45% of all separations from federal service during fiscal 2022 and fiscal 2023, aligning with the overall pattern of more women leaving the workforce since the pandemic.  

Attrition by age 

In fiscal 2022 and fiscal 2023, attrition was highest among those under 30 years old and over 60 years old.  

Federal leaders should focus on this loss of young talent in particular, as the government already struggles to attract young employees and will need to retain more of them as retirements increase. Today, just 7.5% of the full-time federal workforce is younger than 30 and 42% of federal workers are older than 50, compared with 20% and 33% in the broader labor market, respectively.  

Attrition by length of service 

In both fiscal 2022 and fiscal 2023, only two groups of employees had a lower attrition rate than the government-wide average: those with five to nine years of service and those with 10-19 years of service.  

Federal leaders should focus on retaining these midcareer employees because they possess institutional knowledge and serve as established or rising senior executives at their agencies. 

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