One of the options Republicans have proposed as a way to pay for an extension of the payroll tax cut is to reduce the size of the federal workforce, an action many Americans in the latest Economist/YouGov Poll would approve. 47% say the federal workforce is too large. A majority of independents and 75% of Republicans agree, though Democrats disagree.
There are other negatives the public associates with the federal workforce: they think federal employees are paid more than other workers, and don’t work hard enough. 48% (and 66% of Republicans) believe that salaries in the federal government are higher than in the public sector for people with similar levels of experience. 44% (and 62% of Republicans) think that federal employees devote less effort to the jobs than do workers in the private sector.
Photo source: Press Association
