Federal employee job searches spike up to 82% above normal levels

Federal employees have been searching for new jobs online at increasing rates — as high as 82% above normal search levels, according to new Indeed.com data obtained by Axios.

Between the lines: Federal workers are searching for new jobs at above average levels even when their agency isn't technically affected by the shutdown. "It looks like federal workers — even at funded agencies — are starting to think it might be time for me to look elsewhere," Martha Gimbel, Indeed’s director of economic research, tells Axios.

By the numbers: From Dec. 1 to Jan. 20, searches for new jobs by federal employees were up...

• 82% at Department of Health and Human Services
• 55% at Department of Defense
• 52% at Internal Revenue Service
• 38% at Department of Homeland Security
• 31% at Transportation Security Agency
• 23% at Census Bureau
• 11% at Social Security Administration

What’s next: The big questions are whether these search results will continue to rise after the shutdown ends and whether employees are actually frustrated enough to take on jobs outside of the paralyzed federal government.

Go deeper: All the ways Americans are feeling the effects of the shutdown