Workforce estimates show that while state and local public health staffing rebounded to around 239,000 employees in 2022, this growth hasn't kept pace with population increases, and many hires were temporary. Regional disparities, underrepresentation of public health nurses, and looming workforce departures highlight the urgent need for sustained investment, strategic planning, and stronger data collection across all levels of government, including Tribal and territorial agencies.

The nation's public health system is chronically under-resourced and ill-equipped to respond, resulting in a strained workforce that must remain nimble. Maintaining responsiveness to community needs requires a sustainable system with adequate worker supports.

A new tool, the Public Health Workforce Calculator (“Workforce Calculator”), was developed near the onset of the COVID pandemic to help agencies estimate the staffing they would need to fully implement the Foundational Public Health Services (FPHS). The data underlying the Workforce Calculator algorithm was from pre-pandemic time periods.

Our goal was to utilize data from job postings to determine if there were significant differences in salary, education, or experience requirements when comparing jobs in local or state government health departments with the same types of jobs posted in other sectors.