The recent and ongoing “downsizing/rightsizing” of the federal government has created an influx of public workers entering the private workforce. For many, this is perhaps the first time in many years that they have done a traditional job search. There are even some that are finding themselves in this position for the first time in their career.
Given these circumstances, a crash course in “Job Search 101” is in order. Luckily, our website at www.wnyjobs.com has a plethora of resources to review, including years of job search tips articles on every relevant subject imaginable. I highly recommend displaced federal workers (or even anyone beginning a job search) take some time to review all the information that we have available to assist you. Before you rush out to begin your search, take some time to make sure you get off to a good start.
The following is a brief list of related items for you to consider and review.
• Determine Your Job Search Focus: A scattershot “apply for everything” approach to a job search generally results in frustration rather than a new job. Your job search all begins with determining what you want to do in the private sector. The decision may be easier if you possess transferable skills that can easily translate from public to private employment. You may be in a more difficult situation if you did something that is specific to the government or used systems that can’t be found within private employers. This also may be a prime opportunity for you to do something new, but please understand that a decision like this will likely cause delays in finding new employment and may require you to obtain new knowledge or skillset.
• Create Your Cover Letter and Resume: These are your entry documents to prospective employers, so it is critical that you submit your best effort. In addition to reviewing all of our writing tips, please have your documents read for accuracy and clarity by a friend or family member.
• Familiarize Yourself With Private Sector Compensation & Benefits: The pay and benefits structure of a private sector employer is largely determined by the labor market and what they can afford to provide. This will be generally different than what can be found in the public sector, where “rich” benefits generally are used to offset compensation that may trail the private labor market. Researching compensation information is relatively easy, as it can be gathered from a variety of websites that rely on worker survey data to provide relevant data. Benefits will be a bit trickier situation, as it is highly unlikely you will exceed or even match what you had. In particular, your paid time-off (vacation, holiday, and sick) and retirement (401k v. pension) will be much different and, most likely significantly less. You should be prepared for this and not display any disappointment when learning what is being offered.
• Be Ready To Dispel The Stereotypes: Coming into the private job market from public employment may subject you to a number of work-related stereotypes that you will need to overcome. Being aware of what you may be asked and being able to respond in a productive and professional manner will be critical. There may be some Hiring Managers who have an incorrect perception of your ability to adapt/change or your willingness to go the extra mile. Your job will be to dismiss these concerns with examples from your career where you were a great team player, learned something new, or exceeded expectations. Take a moment to write out your answers to these potential concerns and practice your response until you feel that you are natural and convincing.
• Your Committed To The Private Sector: Another concern for Hiring Managers will be that your job search is merely a detour to rejoining the federal workplace if/when they start hiring again. You should be prepared to convince the interviewer that this is unlikely to occur and not something that you plan to pursue.
The first quarter of 2025 saw somewhere in the neighborhood of a quarter of a million federal jobs eliminated. This has created an influx of former public-sector workers entering the private job market, perhaps for the first time ever in their career. Finding employment will be challenging but certainly not impossible, as a key will be to come into your search with the right mindset, documents, and be prepared to dispel any stereotypes that may be clouding the decision-making judgment of the hiring manager.
Finally, as a reminder, we at WNYJOBS have a wealth of information available to you on our website at no cost to help you find your next job!
As always, best of luck in your job search.
The following has been prepared for the general information of RochesterJobs readers. It is not meant to provide advice with respect to any specific legal or policy matter and should not be acted upon without verification by the reader.
Joe Stein
WNY Human Resources Professional
Feel free to contact Joe Stein regarding questions or comments at:
Joe Stein
