Six charts on the age of federal workers
In 2023, the average age of a federal employee was 47.
The average federal worker is around 47 years old, and one out of 20 federal workers were over 65 in 2024.
Of the 2.1 million full-time, permanent federal workers, over 28% were age 55 or above, according to September 2024 data from the Office of Personnel Management (OPM).
How old is the average federal worker?
In 2023, the average federal worker was 47.2, up from 46.3 in 2000.
Is the federal workforce older than other industries?
The median age of the US labor force as a whole was 42.2 in 2024, according to a Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) report. Compared to other industries, government employees — at the federal, state, and local levels — had the second-highest median age at 44.9.
The agriculture, forestry, fishing, and hunting industry had the oldest workforce with a median of 46.1, while the leisure and hospitality industry had the youngest at a median of 32.3.
How many federal employees retire each year?
According to OPM, 108,387 federal employees retired between September 2022 and 2023.
Federal employees are also retiring later: According to Congressional Research Service (CRS) reporting, the average retirement age of federal employees in fiscal year 2022 was 62.3, up 1.5 years from 2014 and 4.7 years from 1998.
Meanwhile, the gap between older and younger federal workers is broadening. In 2005, 8.1% of federal workers were 60+, while 6.9% were in their 20s. By 2024, nearly twice as many workers were in their 60s (14.8%) than their 20s (7.8%).
Is there a mandatory retirement age for federal employees?
Most federal employees do not have a mandatory retirement age. Some do, though: air traffic controllers must retire at 56, and law enforcement officers, firefighters, and some people who work with nuclear materials must retire at 57 if they’ve been in their role for more than 20 years.
According to the CRS, 84.9% of federal retirements in 2022 were voluntary. The other 15.1% were involuntary or a consequence of disability or special provisions for law enforcement, firefighters, air traffic controllers, and politicians.
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Keep exploring
- What happens during a government shutdown furlough? - What happens to federal employees during a government shutdown? Learn who keeps working, who’s furloughed, and how pay, benefits, and leave are affected.
- How long do Americans stay at their jobs? - Nearly half of American workers have been at their jobs either less than a year (22.2%) or more than 10 years (26.2%).
- Minimum wage in America: How many people are earning $7.25 an hour? - In 2023, about 869,000 hourly workers —1.1% of all hourly workers — earned at or below the federal minimum wage.
- Three charts on diversity in the federal government's workforce - Hispanic Americans are the most underrepresented group in the federal workforce.
Page sources
Office of Personnel Management
FedScope: Federal Workforce Data
Bureau of Labor Statistics
Employed persons by detailed industry and age
