Tovic Salvador

US President Donald Trump (L) and Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk watch a fight during UFC 309 at Madison Square Garden in New York, on November 16, 2024. Kena Betancur, AFP/File

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Agence France-Presse

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:950px"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/174147826108220250309.jpg" style="width:950px" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">US President Donald Trump (L) and Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk watch a fight during UFC 309 at Madison Square Garden in New York, on November 16, 2024. <em>Kena Betancur, AFP/File</em></span></span></span></div><p>WASHINGTON — Unprecedented cuts to the US government overseen by President Donald Trump&#x27;s billionaire advisor Elon Musk are sending thousands of federal workers and contractors back to the labor market — but experts warn that hiring is low at this time.</p><p>Official data released Friday showed federal government employment declined by 10,000 in February, the first full month of Trump&#x27;s return to the White House.</p><p>&quot;We&#x27;re trying to shrink government and grow the private sector,&quot; Trump told reporters in the Oval Office after the data was released.</p><p>Analysts say the full effects of his government cuts are yet to be seen, and they warn of a possible mismatch between workers&#x27; skills and the jobs available in the marketplace.</p><p>For some, like staff in the international development sector, their whole industry has been upended.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/world/2025/3/8/doge-job-cuts-shake-trump-supporters-2146">DOGE job cuts shake Trump supporters</a></div><p>&quot;I&#x27;m grieving, trying to figure out what next to do for a paycheck,&quot; said a 38-year-old contractor for the US Agency for International Development (USAID).</p><p>The Trump administration has sought to dismantle USAID, ending many humanitarian and other support projects globally.</p><p>The worker, who declined to be named, told AFP: &quot;It&#x27;s going to be quite difficult to find alternative jobs, because basically an entire industry has been wiped out in less than a month.&quot;</p><p>She has been on unpaid leave since mid-February and is living on her savings.</p><p>She has applied for other jobs but not heard back, and said she cannot afford to live in Washington indefinitely without a job.</p><div><strong>Major employer<br/></strong></div><p>The US unemployment rate is fairly low, at 4.1 percent, but how easily workers find new jobs will depend on whether their skills translate to the private sector.</p><p>The federal government is the country&#x27;s largest employer, with around 2.4 million employees, excluding active-duty military and US Postal Service personnel.</p><p>While the thousands of layoffs within the federal workforce may not seem large on paper, numbers could balloon once government contractors are included, said Dean Baker, a senior economist at the Center for Economic and Policy Research.</p><p>Economists expect the government layoffs to show up in employment data over the coming months.</p><p>&quot;We&#x27;ll see it unfolding over time,&quot; said economist Aaron Sojourner at the W.E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research.</p><p>In the US capital Washington and its neighboring states Maryland and Virginia, nearly six percent of employees work for the federal government, according to the Pew Research Center.</p><p>Sojourner points out that 80 percent of civil servants are based outside this area, however.</p><p>In states like Wyoming, New Mexico or Oklahoma, they represent more than two percent of total employment.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/world/2025/2/26/one-third-of-musk-s-doge-staff-resign-in-protest-1400">One-third of Musk&#x27;s DOGE staff resign in protest</a></div><div><strong>Low hiring rate<br/></strong></div><p>&quot;It could be quite hard to find alternative employment if there&#x27;s a big flood of people onto the market at once,&quot; Sojourner warned.</p><p>The hiring rate is currently low, noted economist Nancy Vanden Houten at Oxford Economics.</p><p>While some sectors have higher hiring rates, these include less skilled occupations in areas like leisure and hospitality, as well as retail trade.</p><p>This could prove to be a mismatch for federal workers who &quot;are generally more educated and skilled than the private sector workforce,&quot; she said.</p><p>Baker noted that highly educated researchers, especially younger ones, may seek employment in other countries.</p><p>&quot;It&#x27;s a fantastic opportunity for them to pick up talent,&quot; he said.</p><div><strong>© Agence France-Presse</strong></div><div><br/></div><div><strong>RELATED VIDEO</strong></div><div><strong><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/y4VcMoFOwXw?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span></strong><br/></div>

<p>Official data released Friday showed federal government employment declined by 10,000 in February, the first full month of Trump's return to the White House.</p>

Official data released Friday showed federal government employment declined by 10,000 in February, the first full month of Trump's return to the White House.

'Grieving': US federal workers thrown into uncertain job market

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'Grieving': US federal workers thrown into uncertain job market

Agence France-Presse

Published Mar 09, 2025 07:58 AM PHT

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