The Determinants of Queues for Federal Jobs

Abstract

This paper examines the determinants of the number and quality of outside applicants for federal job openings, using a variety of time-series, cross-sectional, and panel data sets. The main finding is that the application rate for government jobs increases as the ratio of federal to private sector earnings increases, but the rate does not appear to be related to the relative level of fringe benefits. Furthermore, an increase in the federal-private sector earnings differential is associated with an increase in the average quality of applicants for federal jobs. The author discusses the implications of these findings for wage determination and recruitment in the federal government.