Public employment continues to grow steadily
Increase of nearly 1,800 full-time equivalent employees in 2002

Despite so-called hiring freezes and FTE reductions in state government over the last year, overall employment has increased by nearly 1,800 full-time equivalent (FTE) positions (1,775.8 to be exact).

To measure growth and spending over time, the state compares fiscal years (FY), which run from July 1 to June 30. The numbers show that state employment grew from 102,042.5 FTEs in 2001 to 103,818.3 in 2002. This upward trend is continuing in 2003.

Comparing employment trends in 2003 with the same time frame in 2002 shows that FTEs are up by 468.6 over last year. If this continues, 2003 will mark the seventh straight year that state FTEs have increased. State employment has grown steadily since 1997.

State (public) employment growth

Source: Office of Financial Management. * Includes salary and benefits.

Because the number of FTEs fluctuates each month due to seasonal employment, the most effective way to measure current trends is to compare months with their corresponding months in previous years. Comparing January 2003 to prior years, we see that while state employment has decreased in some areas, it is still increasing overall:

State FTEs by Sector

Source: Office of Financial Management. * Excludes K-12 teachers.

The numbers show a decrease in some of the agencies subject to Locke's hiring freeze, but overall state employment is growing, despite attempts by the state legislature to reduce FTEs.

Achieving meaningful FTE reduction will require more than a hopeful note in the budget summary. It will require explicit statutory language in the budget itself. Anything less is susceptible to being ignored or overlooked, as current numbers show. At a time when many private citizens are dealing with lost jobs and struggling to make their own ends meet, adding more people to the public payroll is unwise and unfair.

Prepared by Jason Mercier, Budget Research Analyst (360) 956-3482

Evergreen Freedom Foundation P.O. Box 552, Olympia, WA 98507 Phone: (360) 956-3482, Fax: (360) 352-1874 Email: effwa@effwa.org