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Dramatically speeding up a 20-year trend, in November 2002, President George Bush ordered changes in the federal government's procurement process that could move the jobs of hundreds of thousands of government workers into the private sector over the coming years.
The changes ordered by the president will streamline the process of putting the many types of work that could be done by either government agencies or their private-contractor rivals out for competitive bidding. According to the White House, the goals are to cut taxpayers' costs and provide the highest level of service.
Many industry and professional groups favor privatization, because the trend boosts sales for businesses, ranging from independent contractors to major corporations. For example, the National Society of Professional Engineers issued a position paper in October 2002 opposing a House bill that would limit the federal government's ability to outsource.
Unions Take to the Trenches
But the day the White House announced the changes, government-employee unions opened fire. The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), an AFL-CIO-affiliated union, wrote in a statement: "Bush administration officials are at war with reliable and experienced rank-and-file federal employees; they are systematically conspiring to bust their unions, gut their civil service protections and hand over their jobs to politically well-connected contractors."
"We believe contractors have a lot of allies in the Bush administration," says John Irvine, a spokesman for the 600,000-member AFGE in Washington, DC. "There are no cost savings that we're seeing. If there are savings, show us.
"The Bush administration is creating a bad situation for people who want to serve their country through government service," says Daniel Lauber, author of Government Job Finder.
Many low-skill occupations, such as security guard, cafeteria worker and janitor, have already been jobbed out by the government. But Bush's new initiative will open up a wider array of jobs to private competition, from landscapers and trash collectors to engineers and programmers.
Many Federal Workers Could Be Affected
"Almost everybody in our union would be affected," says James Rucidlo, director of the federal division of the National Association of Government Employees, based in Quincy, Massachusetts. For example, the jobs of tradespeople and workers who load submarines could be contracted out to the private sector. "We need to have our installations tight and secure, and privatization doesn't do that," Rucidlo adds.
"Many displaced federal employees probably are going to be out of work," says Lauber. "If they reclaim their job with a private-sector company, there's no way they're going to get the same pay and benefits." Opponents of privatization argue that the government's cost-cutting motive and the private sector's profit motive will inevitably drive down compensation for government work that goes private.
Some Are Still Bullish on Government Careers
But some say the ongoing shortage of federal workers, coupled with a projected surge of retirements, bodes well for the future of careers in government.
The changes wrought by privatization of many jobs shouldn't be a factor for those considering government work, says Max Stier, president and CEO of the Partnership for Public Service, a nonprofit group in Washington, DC. The government is going to be a top employer for the foreseeable future.
What will come of those government workers who do lose their positions to private competition? "The opportunities for lateral movement are enormous," says Stier. "The federal government is a huge organization that has jobs in all sorts of locations and all kinds of subject matter.
