Honeymoon is short-lived for new feds

Federal agencies are going to have to work a little bit harder to keep employees excited and engaged beyond the first few years after they are hired -- what observers call the honeymoon period.

The nonprofit Partnership for Public Service this month released a study showing that 75.3 percent of new government workers under the age of 30 are happy with their jobs and agencies compared to just two-thirds of all federal employees. In addition, job satisfaction tends to decline as employee tenure increases -- workers under 30 with more than three years of federal service scored their satisfaction at just 68.7 percent, according to the report.

"The bright side of things, and clearly there are some bright things, is those new and young employees are satisfied," said Tim McManus, vice president for education and outreach at the Partnership. "The caution [for agencies] is why then after three years that the honeymoon period ends? Is it a slope or a cliff and why is that and how do we help to build that relationship so they have equal satisfaction?"

Effective agency leadership and employees' views of individual supervisors play a critical role in the satisfaction scores for emerging professionals, according to the Partnership report. Empowerment and the ability to take initiative on the job; pay; and training and development opportunities also are important to new employees. Retention is higher for satisfied workers than for those who are unhappy with their agencies or jobs, the study found.

New agency hires tend to be younger and "don't generally know a lot about the organization because they are new and are still riding the 'high' associated with a new workplace, new set of responsibilities, new team and new salary," said Adam Cole, director of government practice at the Corporate Executive Board, adding that agencies have to use the first several years of employment to build long-term engagement with workers.

According to Paul Rowson, managing director at human resources association WorldatWork, it takes about three years for the average employee to acclimate to a new job and find perceived shortcomings in the work environment. In the federal government, workers are discouraged by a pay system that does not appropriately recognize varied performance, a complex career planning process, and an outdated job classification system, he said.

Undertrained managers, frequent leadership turnover and underprepared human resources staff also can affect employee engagement, Rowson said. A 2010 Partnership survey found 46 percent of chief human capital officers believed their HR departments lacked the skills necessary to effectively hire.

"These issues are fundamental and systemic," Rowson said. "The solution will take real [human resources] and management leadership and partnership. It will take time, and there are tough times ahead."