Uncle Sam Says ‘Help Wanted,’ but Recent Grads Don’t Bite

The federal government is experiencing a severe shortage of younger workers, which is causing problems now and may lead to more later.

Five times as many federal workers are over age 60 than under age 30 in the booming area of information technology, Max Stier, president of the nonprofit Partnership for Public Service, told Bloomberg Law. The lack of younger employees in this field is striking and indicative of a broader problem for federal agencies, he said.

The government needs to prepare now to avoid “talent pipeline” problems down the road in IT and other in-demand fields, Stier said. The ...