Celebrate Public Service Recognition Week

By Janelle Callahan, Principal Consultant, Institute for Public Sector Employee Engagement, CPS HR Consulting

This week is Public Service Recognition Week, a grassroots effort to honor federal, state, and local government employees, coordinated since 1985 by the Public Employees Roundtable and member organizations.

Results from our July 2016 national poll suggest public sector employees, and especially federal employees, could really use the support, too. We found that the top culture driver of employee engagement is, “I feel valued for the work I do.” Results of the poll indicated that the overall government score for this statement is significantly lower than the private sector score: only 67 percent of government respondents overall agreed, compared to 72 percent of private sector respondents. By level of government, federal employees had the lowest level of agreement (63 percent), followed by state (66 percent), and local government (69 percent) employees.

A closer look
Why would the federal government have a lower percentage of employees who feel appreciated? One possibility is that they may not have as many personal interactions with citizens, compared to local and state government employees, and therefore, there may be fewer opportunities for appreciation to be expressed directly. The public may also not be as aware of what federal government workers do, unlike the local and state employees they may encounter in their neighborhoods and communities.

That’s why we believe the Partnership for Public Service and its Service to America Medals (Sammies) are so important. Check out the stories of the 2017 Sammies finalists announced today -- and be sure to take the time to thank a public servant this week!