ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Friday, March 15, 1996 TAG: 9603150040
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: A-7 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: WASHINGTON
SOURCE: Associated Press
A generation ago, a job with the federal government meant lifelong security and prestige.
But, given the recent government shutdowns, campaigns to trim the federal payroll and a political climate hostile to Washington's bureaucracy, some wonder whether a career in the public service is losing its luster.
The buffeting that federal workers endured last year, including the attack on an Oklahoma City federal building, has raised questions about Uncle Sam's ability to recruit the best and the brightest.
``The problem lies in attracting those high achievers who are now in college, those people who are idealistic and want to make changes,'' said John Sturdivant, president of the American Federation of Government Employees.
And now, as Congress and President Clinton keep trying to stare each other down over a budget for a year half-gone, a third government shutdown has been averted by the skin of its teeth.
Joan Jacobs, a Health and Human Services analyst, said she and her colleagues have just caught up on the backlog of work that grew during the previous shutdowns.
``A lot of people feel discouraged, but in general it's amazing how highly motivated people are. In not too long, we got back in the groove,'' she said. ``And now they're starting again.''
To be a U.S. diplomat has long been a coveted career. But an increasing number of students at foreign affairs schools are choosing private industry over public service, said F. Allen Harris, president of the 12,000-member American Foreign Service Association.
The State Department canceled this year's foreign service entrance exam because it already has enough candidates to fill vacancies. Many slots will go to United States Information Agency employees who face layoffs.
Despite all this, applications for federal jobs have increased. According to the Office of Personnel Management, 8.56 applications were received per opening in the first quarter of fiscal 1996, compared to 5.96 a year earlier.
Office of Personnel Management spokeswoman Janice Lachance said more people may be looking at the government as a place to start their careers, not spend them.
Also, some workers are accepting pay cuts to transfer out of agencies targeted by politicians to relatively safe departments such as Defense, Treasury and law enforcement offices.
LENGTH: Medium: 52 lines ILLUSTRATION: GRAPHIC: Chart by staff: Federal workers in our region. color.by CNB